


Deceit - The Phantom Thief

by girlfriendfromhell



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Angst, Angst and Romance, Betrayal, Brainwashing, Childhood Memories, Deceit, Electrocution, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, First Dates, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Isolation, Lies, Loss of Trust, Love Confessions, M/M, Mastermind, Mystery, Phantom Thief AU, Psychological Torture, Regret, Relationship(s), Rivalry, Romance, Secret Messages, The Author Regrets Nothing, Threats of Violence, Torture, Trust, Trust Issues, Violence, oumasai, phantom thief, saiouma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-08
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-05-29 12:59:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 136,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15073670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/girlfriendfromhell/pseuds/girlfriendfromhell
Summary: It was human nature to survive, to cheat death at every opportunity, and when detective Shuichi Saihara is given the mission of capturing and unmasking a devious phantom thief, he would never have expected the danger he had gotten himself into. With the thief, his organisation and a third party on his tail, his life was destined to inevitably crumble around him. He may have thought that this was just another simple case, however, deep down everything isn't all as it seems. Trust? Betrayal? A happy ending? As Shuichi discovers, be careful what you wish for...Or, alternatively:Apprentice detective Shuichi Saihara is given the job of capturing and unmasking a mysterious phantom thief who, in turn, attempts to steal his heart. Through a series of evil schemes and nefariously cruel plots, the thief isn't the only one trying to keep the detective for themselves. It's a war, with Shuichi in the middle, his life gradually falling apart, and he's the only one who can stop it. But who is the mastermind pulling the strings?





	1. A/N

Hey!! Before you dive in I'd like to say a couple of things. 

Firstly, this fic was written specifically for me - it's like a vent. A lot of details relating to the characters, thematic elements and messages relate to myself or my life, so if you see something specific that you don't agree with, please don't say anything about it and move on. 

Secondly, I don't intend to write any smut or graphic sex of any kind; it's all romance and fluff. If that's what you're looking for then please go somewhere else. There are some references to sex as well as sex jokes occasionally, however. 

Thirdly, there is graphic (somewhat) violence in this. For instance, torture scenes (though they're brief and mainly dialogue), scenes where characters can become violent towards one another etc

There is some swearing, though it's rare. The only time where you will see a lot of swearing in one place is when Aergia (a DICE member - they were never given names or developed so I did all of that myself) is talking. 

In addition, there will be **mentions of suicide** or **implied/referenced suicide** so please be mindful of that. It won't come up in the first 10 chapters (possibly 15) at least, so there's nothing to worry about for now. 

Please comment any theories you have about what you think is going on because I love to read what you guys think. Also, kudos would be extremely encouraging too. 

My Instagram is @/pantahoe  
My wattpad is @/girlfriendfromhell (updates come out quicker there) 

I hope you enjoy the story.


	2. A New Case

The calming aroma of coffee wafted through the small café in the late afternoon, the sophisticated scent intoxicating. The dark navy haired boy sipped his hot drink then carefully placed the cup back on the round table with one hand, and turned the delicate page of his newspaper with the other. A certain headline caught his attention: _Phantom Thief Strikes Again! Idabashi Catastrophe!_

"Hey Shuichi! What's so interesting in there that you can't stop reading?" A tall boy with over-styled purple hair asked, tapping the top of the newspaper with a finger.

Shuichi looked up. "It's that phantom thief again. Look," He passed the newspaper to his friend, "Professor Idabashi's blueprints and the prototype for his new robot were stolen last night."

The taller boy scanned the page quickly before handing the paper back with a sigh. "So who do you think is the culprit?"

A girl with long dark brown hair bunched in pigtails peered across the table at the paper. "Kaito, it could be anyone."

"Anyone incredibly sneaky and intelligent." Shuichi added. "But you can't just throw around accusations. No one has gathered any information about the thief's identity either, besides the fact that he's male."

The boy named Kaito sighed again and stared into his glass. "You think they're gonna catch him?"

"No. They've been trying to catch him for months, Kaito. If they could catch him, don't you think they would've devised a plan which succeeded in capturing him already?" The girl beside Kaito replied, resting her elbows on the table with a huff.

"Yeah... Maybe you're right Maki. I just hope they catch the guy soon!" Kaito beamed punching the air enthusiastically.

Shuichi pulled his black cap forward slightly. "There's got to be _something_ in particular that they want. Or maybe they have a goal? It just doesn't make sense." He shook his head.

The brunette looked at Shuichi. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that there's got to be some kind of link between all the thefts or the culprit must have an end goal at least. Why steal from jewelery shops all over the country for months and then suddenly show up at a high security laboratory and steal blueprints and a robot prototype? They're completely different things! It doesn't add up." Shuichi took another sip of his coffee in frustration. This whole phantom thief ordeal irritated him. He couldn't seem to work it out.

"It really does sound like they're trying hard to attract attention." Kaito stated as he stared even harder into his glass as if he were a clairvoyant gazing into a crystal ball. "If there's no pattern with the crimes then the only explanation is that they're trying to attract as much attention as they can to themselves. They could just be trying to make themselves known, don't you think?"

Maki smirked. "Wow Kaito! You said something really smart! I'm impressed." Her words were laced with adoration rather than venom. 

"I've said smarter things, Maki Roll." Maki's boyfriend replied.

"Yeah? Like what?" She smiled, amused by their playful banter.

Kaito smiled and leaned over to Maki and whispered in her ear. "I love you."

Maki turned her head away and blushed, her face as crimson as the ruby sailor uniform and thigh-high socks she sported. Her skirt was black, pleated and plaid underneath the table along with her brown ankle boots which enabled the girl to run comfortably. Her red eyes darted away from the boys as if not seeing them would prevent them from noticing her cherry cheeks. Shuichi smiled warmly at his friends' loving interactions. He was happy for Kaito and Maki; it had almost been 7 months since they'd started dating and the trio were the best of friends. Shuichi could trust them with anything. 

"But Kaito, I don't think you're wrong there. It could simply be an attention thing." Maki shrugged, swiping Kaito's glass from him and sipping his water. Kaito raised his eyebrow at her as she slid it back across the table - she had her own drink but she appeared to think Kaito's was better. She turned towards the boy drinking coffee. "What do you think Shuichi?"

"I think Kaito's right. It definitely makes sense when you put it that way. In addition, it explains the calling cards left at each crime scene. Looks to me like they're trying to challenge people to figure out what the hint on the card means so they can attempt to prevent another theft. However, no one has been able to catch them yet and still are unaware of anyone who could be a suspect." Shuichi stated, once again scanning through the newspaper for any details he may have missed before.

"To do that they must be pretty confident that they won't get caught." Kaito added.

"Perhaps it's the thrill of it all that they enjoy. You know? Stealing and escaping unseen? Leaving the whole crime shrouded in mystery?" Maki suggested, biting her lip. 

"That could be it..." Shuichi muttered finishing off his coffee.

"Well if that's not the case then I trust you'll come up with something else! Because you're my sidekick!" Kaito cheerfully declared, much more energetically than when this conversation had begun. His sudden outburst of enthusiasm caused his purple blazer to slip off of his shoulder revealing the unbuttoned white shirt he wore underneath on top of a white t-shirt with a kumadori design stamped onto it. Kaito never wore his jacket properly; he refused to wear the right sleeve and left it draping over his right arm like a cape to show off the galaxy design on the inside of it. His trousers were the same colour as his jacket, the purple being his signature colour. He had one leg crossed on top of the other, his grey sandals hanging off his heels. He casually pulled the out of place clothing back over his shoulder, slightly tugging it across his chest to ensure it wouldn't fall again. 

"Heh y-yeah..." Shuichi chuckled. He wished he had Kaito's confidence and energy, however he was only Shuichi Saihara: the shy, overhyped detective who only became known because he solved one mere murder case. He didn't even want to be a detective but since he lived with his uncle who owned a detective agency, that's just how it all played out. Shuichi learned everything he did about detective work from observing his uncle, it wasn't that impressive no matter how many compliments he received about his skills.

Suddenly his phone began to ring and 'I'm Too Sexy' crept out of the device earning an avalanche of entertained giggles from Maki and Kaito. Shuichi quickly prised the device stuck in the pocket of his black and grey pinstriped trousers, which matched the jacket he wore over his white shirt, and hurriedly answered to avoid further embarrassment.

"Hello?" Shuichi started.  
"Hello, Shuichi. We've got a case for you. I'm sure you'll enjoy working on it. It's a big one!" A deep voice announced. It was Shuichi's uncle: a kind man Shuichi was very grateful towards.  
"Oh, really? What is it?" The younger boy quizzed, intrigued by his uncle's claim.  
"Come down to the agency and I'll explain. I've also got someone special here waiting for you. She'll help you with the case."  
"O-Okay... I'm on my way. I'll be there in... approximately ten minutes if I hurry."  
"Great! See you in a bit, champ." Shuichi's uncle hung up the phone and the dark haired boy was greeted with silence.

"Nice ring tone, hot stuff!" Kaito cackled along with Maki, both were visibly very entertained.

"Sh-Shut up! I forgot to change it back to the default! It's not my fault that I had to change my ringtone to that!" Shuichi retaliated, his cheeks pink from embarrassment. He set his phone on silent mode and put it back into his pocket. 

"Next time be careful to not lose my bets!" Kaito winked, wiping imaginary tears from the corners of his eyes with the backs of his fingers.

"Your bets are _impossible_ and you know it!" Shuichi snapped, however there was no bite in his voice. He cleared his throat. "A-Anyway, I've got to go. My uncle has another case for me. I'll tell you about it later. Bye, you two."

"Later sidekick!" Kaito beamed waving with Maki.

Shuichi smiled and waved at his friends as he left the humble, homely safety of the warm building. If he wanted to make it to the office within ten minutes he'd have to make haste. Tightly holding onto his jet black hat on his head with one hand, Shuichi darted down the street curious to discover what sort of mystery awaited him.

By the time the golden eyed boy reached his destination he was out of breath, sweating uncontrollably and only a few minutes late. Trying his best to focus his breathing and catch his breath again, Shuichi pushed the tall, glass double doors open and entered. He scanned the room for his uncle. 

It was quite a small agency, so the lobby wasn't giant or luxurious but it definitely was pleasing and inviting. The male's dark blue loafers trod on the charcoal carpet as he made his way towards the reception desk. 

Upon the lifeless grey walls were small paintings of trees and landscapes, although not quite famous paintings. Their soul purpose was to distract you from the overall emptiness of the room, and they did their job expertly. Despite the gloomy colour scheme of the room, small lights in the ceiling illuminated the place bringing the monotonous space to dreary life.

Shuichi pressed the bell on the desk alerting his uncle of his arrival and the man walked joyfully out from the interrogation room behind the desk to greet his nephew. Shuichi's uncle _was_ old but by no means was he ancient; 57 was a respectable age for a hardworking man such as himself. He was a relatively skinny man with only a bit of tummy cuddle around his waist. If he worked on his body a little more he would look quite fine, even attractive. His hair was short and grey, his hairline receding on his round head. The old man donned a smart, grey suit and a white shirt accompanying a striped blue and black tie which he tucked underneath his blazer. His shoes were a shiny, polished carob harmonising with his hazel eyes. 

"Ah, Shuichi. We've been waiting for you. Come, come." He signalled for Shuichi to follow him and both men disappeared through the door.

They entered the interrogation room; a small office with bookshelves lining the dull, brown walls and a rectangular table in the centre of the room. An obviously placed security camera was positioned facing it, probably to prevent suspects who were interrogated from doing anything rash. 

At that table sat a girl with long, pale lilac hair with a black ribbon to the side of her head holding an intricate braid. She donned a dark purple jacket worn on top of a white blouse and brown tie. A short black skirt hugged her legs loosely, matching her knee high heeled boots and the gloves she always wore. She never took her gloves off. _Never._ Shuichi recognised her instantly. She was Kyoko Kirigiri - a detective, much like Shuichi, with a stone cold personality who solved the mystery of her father's death. After that despairing day she had never failed a case - she had sworn on her family name to never screw up or tarnish their high reputation. Shuichi and Kyoko were rivalling detectives in competition to see who was better than the other, but that much was already clear even without a contest; Kyoko specialised in complex things such as murder cases whereas Shuichi took on cases looking for lost pets and runaways, not to mention occasional background checks. Without a doubt, Kyoko was much further than a step ahead of him but this only drove Shuichi on with his determination to, one day, become as great a detective as Kyoko Kirigiri.

Shuichi sheepishly sat down beside the quiet girl on a wobbly, wooden chair. It certainly seemed worn, he shuddered at the thought of who had sat there before and what had happened to them and how desperate they must've been to leave that they struggled so much the chair had been damaged. Although he and Kirigiri were rivals, he admired her a lot but he was also intimidated by her presence whenever they crossed paths. Now, to his surprise, he had to sit beside her and feel the impassive confidence radiating off of her, scorching his pale skin like a merciless heatwave. She had some respect for Shuichi too, but she would never admit to it. She wasn't one to talk about feelings, especially when she masked hers so perfectly. 

Sitting across from the two on a much more comfortable seat, Shuichi's uncle began to explain. "Now that we're all here, allow me to give your new case. Should you accept it, I expect you start working on it right away. It's going to be a tough one." His face grew serious accentuating his wrinkles and he spoke with a professional tone of voice. It was evident he was eager to begin the case.

"May I ask what case this is you are referring to?" The girl piped up. "I do believe you're talking about the phantom thief right?"

The dignified gentleman's staid face broke into a soft smile. "Your deductions are correct as always, Miss Kirigiri." His smile suddenly faltered as he pulled his face back into it's previous placid expression. "I called you both here today to ask you to take on the case together. I understand that it is most definitely going to be a strenuous task, so I would like you both to work together."

Kyoko peered at Shuichi from the corner of her eye before flicking her attention back to the man offering her a job. "Do we _have_ to work together to solve this case? I see no problem in teamwork if that's not the occasion, however I prefer to work alone." She said, deadpan.

"I really don't mind working alone if it makes you more comfortable!" Shuichi smiled awkwardly and raised his hands as if surrendering. Kyoko only shot him a fraction of a glance.

"However you choose to work isn't any of my concern as long as you're both working your hardest to capture and unmask this phantom thief." The old detective asserted, trying to steer the conversation back to its original topic. He just wanted the pair of capable investigators to get along nicely. However this wasn't the only reason: he wasn't very fond of how shy or introverted his nephew was. He believed that if he paired him up to work with another detective he was fond of who was confident and composed, Shuichi may become more outgoing and have some faith in himself and his detective skills. He loved his nephew like his own son and wouldn't do anything Shuichi wouldn't like, but this was all for his own good right? Surely Shuichi would thank him, wouldn't he? 

"Very well." The girl stood up with a weak apologetic smile on her chalky face. It was almost unnoticeable.

"H-Hey... Where are you going?" Shuichi turned his head towards her as his rival sauntered towards the door.

She froze in place never once looking back. "Exactly where you should be going: to catch the phantom thief."

"But-" Shuichi's uncle stood up and reached his arm out towards her as if he believed some magical force would prevent the gifted girl from leaving. "I haven't given you both the calling card necessary for locating where the thief will strike next!" His voice gradually increased in volume the further Kyoko walked until she had left the room completely. He sighed agitatedly but he left her be. She was a renowned detective famous for her ability to solve any case she was presented with, after all. 

"May I see the calling card?" Shuichi asked feeling somewhat guilty that it was his fault Kyoko had left. His uncle sat down once again.

"Of course." He slid the small card across the desk. The card wasn't very large and had peculiar patterns on it.

_Symbolism. That must be it._ Shuichi thought. He began inspecting the black card. On the top left there was a dark red rose and in the opposite corner there was another rose, however it was purple instead. Long thorny stems danced along the edges of the card threatening those who dared to touch them. Shuichi traced the intricate pattern with his focused eyes as his attention was finally brought to a small drawing of, what he assumed to be, a goddess clutching a white masquerade mask. Beneath her feet was the word 'Laverna' in tiny white text. Underneath was a dice; Shuichi noted that it was rather out of place with the theme of the rest of the card. 

"Turn it over - the hint is written there. I just thought looking at the design of the calling card could give us some clues." The older man flipped the card over swiftly.

"Ah thanks." Shuichi studied the hint given on the backside of the card. The font of the words was incredibly fancy, almost messy, making it arduous to decipher the scrawny words displayed in bright white text which contrasted from the black background significantly.

He carefully read out the hint:   
" _Tonight will be fun!_  
 _An adventure into the past has begun!_  
 _A brilliant purple is the wisdom stone,_  
 _The perfect colour for my perfect throne!_ " 

Shuichi read it over again. "What does this mean? Adventure into the past? Wisdom stone?" He sighed with an irritated huff and read the card's cynical message once again. 

"The card was found this morning and was handed to us immediately to investigate. Apparently the card was in an envelope with today's date written on it, just in case that could be helpful to you. Seems as if the next crime is taking place tonight... Oh my, would you look at the time? I didn't realise it was this late into the day already! I'm sorry Shuichi, I have a meeting now regarding the case based around those two girls I was telling you about last time we met. The magician and the martial artist? My God their case is... definitely something else! Take the card with you, I'm sure it'll come in very useful. Take care!" And with that, the older male got up and left leaving the young detective alone in the cold room, studying the taunting message. 

Another fifteen minutes had passed and somehow Shuichi had found himself much more perplexed than before. Shuichi wasn't the best at solving riddles, especially ones he struggled to read. He picked it up and slipped it into his pocket - maybe Kaito could help him. He quickly left the office building and began to make his way to Kaito and Maki's house. If he wasn't there then he'd have to find and ask Kyoko, wherever she had ran off to, or simply just figure it out himself. Figuring out the meaning of the message himself would probably be more beneficial for him if he truly wanted to become a better detective, however asking for help should never be frowned upon no matter how embarrassing it seems. 

The streets were as busy as you'd expect them to be on a Saturday evening. Couples, hand in hand, populated the streets walking home from a happy day out, enjoying the resplendent sunset. The July sun, although hidden behind fluffy ghost-like clouds, blazed down upon humanity as Shuichi advanced down the lively road until he came to a stop at a zebra crossing. He pressed the button to stop the traffic and waited impatiently. He was worried - if he couldn't figure out what the riddle on the calling card meant he would fail the case. The clock was ticking and night was falling faster by the minute.

Waiting for the signal to turn green, Shuichi's attention was caught by a poster taped to the signal light post. Or, more importantly, the hauntingly familiar words printed onto it.

**_Grand Opening!_ **   
_An adventure into the past has begun!_   
_The beauty of humanity will be revealed in a splendid new exhibit!_   
**_17th July 10pm At The Shinguji Museum of Anthropology!_ **

He pulled the card from his pocket finally understanding what the hint meant. That night, an old acquaintance would have his museum targeted for theft by the phantom thief. Shuichi had to stop it! He snatched his phone from his pocket and immediately began dialing the number of Korekiyo Shinguji; he needed to warn him before it was too late! The traffic stopped at the red lights and Shuichi sprinted across the road holding his hat in one hand and pressing his phone to his ear with the other.

A moment later and Korekiyo had answered the phone asking the breathless boy why he sounded so panicked. The detective explained to him that the phantom thief was targeting his museum that night and to increase security both inside and outside the security to minimize the likeliness of a theft. Shuichi was determined not to fail. This was a big case; if he managed to stop the crime _and_ unmask the thief his reputation as a respectable detective could only improve from there. He could make his parents realise what a mistake their neglect towards him his entire life was and that he was worthy of their affection. He'd be able to prove himself to them! It lit a fire inside of him. He couldn't fail now. Slipping his phone back into his pocket, Shuichi picked up the pace and began to sprint towards the Shinguji Museum of Anthropology - it was 8 pm - there was no time to lose.

Shuichi slowed to a walk, a painful stitch at his side as he approached the tremendous establishment. He was nervous. If no one else could catch this devious trickster then how could he, a trainee detective, ever capture and reveal the identity of the criminal? There was only an hour and forty-five minutes until 10 pm. He had just enough time to make sure the place was well guarded and talk to Mr. Shinguji before the grand opening of the new display began. Taking a deep breath, he pushed the heavy wooden doors open and disappeared into the museum. 

Upon entry Shuichi was greeted by the exact person he was looking for. Mr. Shinguji seemed pleased to see Shuichi, his narrow yellow eyes, which contracted against his long black hair dangling by his waist, lighting up at the sight of him. His moss military cap cast shadows over his face, darkening the only skin he didn't cover. A decorative chain hung from the left of it. The detective could've sworn that he had seen a small smile peeking out from underneath the other man's mask which covered his pale complexion as he walked speedily towards him, his black knee-high boots tapping against the marble. He wondered if the man's skin underneath the mask had ever seen sunlight, considering how chalky and white the rest of his face was. A dark green military style uniform clung to his body, a seaweed buttoned up jacket with studded shoulders and cuffs on top of a white shirt. It complemented the juniper trousers accompanied with it. An expensive looking silver locket dangled from his neck. 

"Ah detective Saihara! I've been expecting you. Come along, we have much to discuss." His voice was kind and warm however there was also quite a sinister tone to it as well which made Shuichi slightly uncomfortable. He reached out one of his bandaged hands and hesitantly Shuichi shook it politely. Did he hide his hands for a similar reason to Kyoko or just to appear fashionable? The detective pondered the thought. Shuichi walked around the museum with his guide and the two men conversed about security arrangements and the safety of the building.

"Mr. Shinguji, are you positive that you've got this all worked out?" Shuichi asked anxiously.

"Of course! No silly thief could damage the utter beauty of my wonderful museum! My security are the best. Anyone they spot acting or looking suspicious will be denied access. There's nothing to worry about, I can assure you, detective." Mr. Shinguji grinned confidently under his raven mask sounding exceedingly proud of himself.

"Well... If you say so." The dark blue haired boy couldn't brush off his nerves. "Oh! I almost forgot to ask! Could you tell me about the new display you're opening to the public tonight?"

The museum owner's face lit up with a smirk. "I thought you would never ask. Follow me, I'll show you exactly how alluring the precious gemstone is." The two quickly walked towards a much smaller room compared to the rest of the museum. 

Korekiyo opened the door revealing the contents of the room. The room was lined with rows of fancy display cases filled with all sorts of dazzling jewels in a glamorous array of shining colours. There was a dull silver spiraling staircase to the left of the door leading up to a balcony, however at the base of the steps the entrance was blocked off by a chain and a 'No Entry' sign. The stairs appeared somewhat unstable as if they would come crashing down even under the weight of a young child. In the far right corner was another door but much smaller and less grand in comparison to the door he'd just entered. A storage room perhaps? In the middle of the room was another display case however it was covered by a large red sheet - most likely to add suspense to the dramatic unveiling of such a magnificent stone. 

The pair approached the scarlet box, an infatuated grin of adoration plastered across Korekiyo's face. He tugged the corners of the sheet slightly. "Ready to be astonished, detective?" Shuichi nodded and the older man ripped the cover from the glass case.

Shuichi's eyes widened at the sight of the stone. Instantaneously he recognised that _this_ was, in fact, what the phantom thief was after. "A brilliant purple is the wisdom stone..." He muttered, putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

"You sound as if you know much about amethysts, Saihara." The man smiled as he began to cover the stone up again. "The amethyst is rumoured to be a stone of major healing and, when worn, is said to protect the wearer from contagious diseases. It is truly a wonderful artifact. In addition, in the past wealthy monarchs used amethysts as a symbol of royalty and was believed to bring not only riches, but fortune and power to its owners. Nowadays it is used in spells designed to magnify beauty and, as you can see, the gemstone clearly is radiant."

"A symbol of royalty huh?" Shuichi remembered the final line of the hint: _The perfect colour for my perfect throne!_ It seemed that the phantom thief had thought quite hard when writing their hints, but not too hard that they were unsolvable. Did they perhaps see this as a game? It was settled. This was definitely what the thief was after. "Mr. Shinguji, this is what they want."

"Are you sure? Why would they steal _that_ when there are far more valuable things to steal? I cannot deny that it is simply beautiful though. Not that they're going to be able to take anything anyway - we've already established that this whole building will be well protected." He retaliated tilting his head to the side, walking the detective out of the room, one hand on the other man's back. 

"It has to be... Otherwise nothing else makes any sense. Everything written on the calling card left at Professor Idabashi's laboratory leads to the amethyst. If I'm wrong, which I doubt I am, I'll take full responsibility for the results of my incorrect deductions." That final sentence made Shuichi's stomach drop as the words left his mouth. He _couldn't_ be wrong. could he? He'd only said it in an attempt to convince the man beside him and he couldn't go back on it now.

"I'll call security and have them tightly guard this room. No one is escaping with that amethyst tonight." The taller man responded locking the door of the room up again, emphasising his point. 

"Alright. It's almost half past nine, we should check over the museum once more and make sure there are no places anyone could hide or enter before visitors arrive." Shuichi was still nervous about the situation. If the phantom thief could raid a place with incredible amounts of security without being caught, how on earth was he going to be caught at a museum, by an apprentice detective nonetheless? However, Shuichi agreed to take the case and he was insistent on seeing this case through to the very end.

Soon after, people began pouring into the building and exploring the room containing the stunning exhibit. Korekiyo had placed an unnecessary amount of security guards inside and outside of the room, as well as scattered throughout the museum and outside the main entrance. All fire exits were kept a sharp eye on too. He was prepared for the worst, to say the least. Shuichi stood with Mr. Shinguji beside the amethyst hidden beneath the scarlet sheet keeping a lookout for any suspicious individuals. 

The room, though spacious, was crowded with people eager to see the new addition to the room of gorgeous gemstones. Most people looked quite elegant and wealthy wearing flamboyant gowns and suits. Shuichi had noticed a few people here and there loitering oddly close to the ropes in front of the amethyst however no one had yet made a move to steal it. Shuichi quickly checked the time on his phone: **10:07pm.** He was beginning to think that he had been wrong about this whole thing and he could feel his chest becoming tight with worry. He scanned the room once again, desperately trying to spot any potential suspects in an attempt to calm his nerves.

Suddenly the lights blacked out shrouding the room in darkness, the blackness swallowing the contents of the room greedily. The room erupted into a panicked frenzy at the loss of sight pushing and shoving other people in a fright. A childish cackle echoed off of the walls as the lights flickered back on revealing the source of the noise to be a short boy dressed head to toe in obscene white clothing with long purple hair swept back into a loose, lazy ponytail held with a black clip. A long cape hung from his shoulders underneath a checkered black and white mask around his neck appearing as a scarf at first glance. He stood on the balcony towering above the rest of the people in the room as if he believed he were a God watching over the lowly creatures on Earth. He peered down before him, surveying the hysterical scene through his white masquerade-like mask that covered everything above his nose. 

"HAHAHA What a turnout! Did you all come to see _me_? That's soo kind of you all, it fills my heart with glee! I feel all fuzzy and warm inside now! How this adoration makes me tingle..." The boy sneered slyly, hands hidden behind his back like a child hiding something from its mother.

"Who are you?" Korekiyo Shinguji pointed at the intruder, enraged. His eyes narrowed in hatred. 

The trespasser threw his head back in a violent fit of giggles. "Who am I? Isn't it obvious Mr. Shinguji? I'm the devil and you, as well as all these other lovely people, are in hell! You're all dead!" He revealed a mean, toothy grin. "Just kidding! That was a lie! I'm the person you left all those security guards for, silly!" He suddenly frowned. "It's a shame they were all weak though... That was no fun at all!"

"What do you mean you creepy fiend?" The museum owner yelled, unsure of what to do. He wanted to call for security but after hearing what the boy had said he knew it would be pointless.

The villainous invader flashed a venomous smile removing his hands, which were revealed to be donned by smooth obsidian gloves, from behind his back. From his right hand he swung a pair of handcuffs from his index finger and using his left hand he placed a security cap onto his head. "Security? They _hardly were_ security; this place isn't very secure is it? Nishishi!" He snickered.

"Stop right there! Leave! I'll call the police!" Mr. Shinguji was helpless and desperate, but no one could do anything.

"Hmm... Nope! Well, it's been fun talking to you, my beloved fans, but I've got to hurry up and claim what's mine. Nighty night! Sweet dreams!" And with that, he pulled his scarf up over his face like a mask and a small can out from his pocket. He opened it and tossed it into the crowd below him laughing with malicious intent.

Shuichi immediately recognised this to be a type of dangerous gas as one by one spectators of the unfolding scene fell unconscious, collapsing to the ground like dominoes. Covering his mouth and nose with one hand, he dashed towards the display case and, careful to be as quiet and quick as possible, removed the amethyst. Clutching tightly onto the jewel, his eyes darted around the room searching urgently for an escape route as his breath began to run out, lungs screaming desperately for air. He remembered the door he had seen at the back of the room earlier and began to rush towards it praying he hadn't been spotted. 

The lights cut out again and Shuichi found himself stumbling over motionless bodies, tripping and staggering every step he took. Without warning Shuichi crashed to the floor landing in a messy heap of limbs. He scrambled over the bodies hurriedly, trying his best not to hurt the people underneath him before the lights flashed back on. 

Sitting on top of the empty display case, the criminal looked more than pleased to see his plan seemed to be going to way he had hoped. "Now... Time to collect my bounty!" He lifted the sheet up with both hands and bit his lip in excited anticipation. "Come to daddy my beautiful- WHAT?" His cheerful smile abruptly turned into one of frustration and annoyance. He scanned the scene he had so carefully planned and spotted a dark haired boy in all black scampering speedily towards the storage room. "You want to play a game of cat and mouse huh? Nee-heehee~ This could be interesting!" His smile reappeared as he hopped off of the glass box to chase the detective. No one had ever challenged him this way before, it was refreshing to know that there still were _some_ people in this world who had guts.

Shuichi picked up the pace, scuttling even faster towards the door, opening it and slamming it forcefully behind him. The room wasn't extremely huge but was big enough to hide in. There were rows upon rows of shelves stacked with wooden planks, large picture frames and other odd objects; most were lined with pots, packages and cardboard boxes. In front of the shelves were several rope barriers. At the far end of the room were small windows quite high up - they appeared too small for an ordinary human to wriggle through so it would be impossible for Shuichi to escape with the amethyst. Thinking as quickly as he could, Shuichi dragged the heavy, metal barriers over to the door to prevent the criminal from getting in so easily, ultimately stalling him for perhaps another 30 seconds.

His heart pounding in his chest, the detective dashed from the door looking for a hiding place. He crouched behind a shelf containing a variety of different old looking pots at the far right of the room and ducked his head down, holding the large gemstone to his chest. A chorus of loud crashing echoed through the room as the man in white burst through the door. _Click._ The door had been locked, trapping both boys in.

"Let the game begin." He jeered, smug.

_Tap... Tap... Tap... Tap..._

He took his time creeping down the center of the room. It sent adrenaline rushing through the detective's veins as he pulled himself into the smallest shape he could force himself. **_CRASH!_** A flick of the thief's wrist and he had sent a glass vase flying from a shelf shattering it against the oak floor. Shuichi was terrified; he had never experienced something as dread inducing as this before. Only in horror movies had he seen things like this - it certainly wasn't something he hoped to make a reality. He knew eventually he was going to get caught, especially since he was trembling uncontrollably, and no one was coming to save him. The door had been locked essentially forbidding him from fleeing. He had to keep stalling until the police arrived, then the thief would be captured and arrested and Shuichi could go home with the satisfaction of having resolved another case. He took a deep, silent breath and focused on relaxing. If he continued to panic things could only go downhill from there - he had to concentrate on his mission.

"Hellooo? Where are you hiding?" _**SMASH!**_ Another glass flew from a shelf. "Come on out, buddy. I just wanna play!" _**CRASH!**_ Boxes were flung across the room. "Show me that pretty little amethyst you've stolen from me! Pretty please with a succulent, juicy cherry on top!" _**SMACK! CRASSHHH!**_ He lobbed a pot at the shelf Shuichi was hiding behind sending the ancient vessels flying off of the ledge, fragments of clay exploding over the wall in front of the detective. Shuichi jumped and gasped in sheer terror knocking the shelf he was leaning against. **Mistake.** As soon as Shuichi realised that his reaction had given away his position he understood that this was it. He was done for.

"Oopsies! My hand slipped, I _promise_!" The short, slender boy chirped. He saw the shelf rattle, he wasn't stupid. A menacing leer formed on his face as he crept towards the shelf agonisingly slowly and silently, careful to not let the other boy hear him even breathe. 

The deafening silence stung Shuichi's ears as he covered his mouth and held his breath. The sound of his heartbeat echoed through his body as he waited for a signal of the other male's whereabouts. He clamped his eyes shut and counted in his head. _**One.** It's all going to be okay. **Two.** Nothing's going to happen. **Three.** It's okay. It's okay. It's really going to be okay._ His head was a terrified, petrified mess, frightened thoughts bouncing around his brain. Staying calm was a challenge. What was he going to do when he was found? 

The fearful boy's soft dark hair began to be stroked gently as a tranquil voice crept into his ear above him. "I've found you." 

"AH!" Shuichi shot up from his hiding spot hugging the stone to his chest with a grip of steel. He was breathing heavily, eyes wide with cold beads of sweat dripping down his pale face and neck. The detective turned to face where the voice had come from to be greeted by the masked villain leaning through the shelf casually, a catty grin stretching across his round face. 

"You look a mess." He climbed off of the dusty shelf and dropped back onto the floor with a quiet thump. Shuichi wanted to use this as an opportunity to run however found himself completely frozen on the spot. The mysterious man walked out from behind the shelf; he and the timid detective finally were face to face. Shuichi couldn't speak. His words forced themselves back down his throat leaving him speechless.

"Not much of a talker are you? Boring! And here I thought you'd be even a _tiny_ bit interesting. How disappointing. This game was a waste of time." The childlike boy huffed stamping his foot on the ground. Faint screams of sirens wailed erratically in the distance. Shuichi let out a personal sigh of relief and smiled. The police were coming! He relaxed and pulled himself together - he had to stall for just a little longer!

"It's not a game. Stop messing around! What did you do to all those innocent people?" The paranoid boy growled, narrowing his eyes at the monster. 

"Oh don't worry so much - they're not dead. I wouldn't go _that_ far; that's just cruel even for my standards. Plus murder is suuuper messy! I don't have the time to clean all those corpses up - I'm a busy man! They're just sleeping! No biggie." He flipped his hand dismissively rolling his eyes with smooth nonchalance. 

"Just give up your scheme. Take off your mask!" Shuichi bravely ordered glaring at the shorter man before him.

"And _why_ would I do that? Who even are you?" The purple haired boy rolled his eyes and put his hands on his hips. He was way too high up for taking direct orders from absolute nobodies. He didn't take orders from _anyone,_ for that matter. 

"My name is Shuichi Saihara. I'm a detective. Now take off the mask-" Shuichi's words were cut short as the childish boy piped up excitedly.

"A _detective?_ Cool!" His eyes lit up enthusiastically, sparkling with childlike wonder. "I've never had anyone step up to me like this before, and for the first to be a detective? I'm _impressed_ nee-heehee." He stepped towards his new fascination.

The taller boy reflexively took a step back. "Someone had to. I took the case and I'm going to see it through to the very end." 

"Unfortunately, you won't be successful with that tonight. I'm gonna need you to be a good boy and hand that over, Shuichi Saihara." He said the detective's name in such an enchanting way it sent shivers down his spine.

"Not a chance. I'll never hand it over!" The investigator took yet another step back gripping the gemstone even more firmly. If this creep wanted it so badly he'd have to pry it out of his cold, dead hands.

"Come on, detective! Cut the cliché crap. It's cute that you're trying to bite back but I'm kinda on a tight schedule right now, because _someone_ thought it would be a fun idea to unnecessarily waste my precious time I could be using to escape. So just. Hand. It. Over." His smile faded and he frowned malevolently, his piercing gaze burning into Shuichi's soul.

"You're saying you didn't find this fun? You certainly sounded like you were enjoying yourself." The detective retaliated trying to buy himself more time. The sirens were gradually getting louder and louder. He could do this if he held on a little longer.

"Of _course_ I had fun! That was a lie. Because you know... _I'm a liar._ This is the most fun I've had in _ages_!" He brought his finger to his lips hiding a wicked smile. "It was even more fun knowing I've been playing hide and seek with such a cute, attractive boy like you, Shuichi. I _like_ playing with you..." His final sentence curled off of his tongue as if he were the snake that charmed Eve in the Garden of Eden. Shuichi could feel his face burning up. His cheeks were a hot pink.

"S-Stop! I know what you're trying to do and it's not going to work! Your words aren't going to distract me from doing my job. You're not taking this amethyst!" His heart was thumping in his chest for a completely different reason than fear, and he _hated_ it.

"Aw you caught on... But you look so _cute_ when you're flustered! I can't help it! It makes me want to do it more..." The criminal edged closer to the taller boy forcing him towards the wall, his feet crunching on broken glass with every step he took.

"S-Stay away! The police are here! They'll be here any minute now!" Shuichi threatened, knowing that if he didn't say anything to scare him off he'd end up with nowhere to run.

"Oho! No, no, no! You see, Shuichi," His voice was gentle as he stroked his gloved hand down the side of the detective's face and cupped his chin delicately, "You don't scare me at all. Nishishi~ It doesn't matter what you say to me. I always get what I want." He pushed Shuichi against the wall beneath the window and pressed his free hand on the taller boy's chest. The thief could feel Shuichi's rapid heartbeat through his fingertips.

"W-Wait! Stop!" Shuichi couldn't fight back without having to put down the purple gem. He was powerless against the boy in the white mask. "You're not getting your way _this time_ , you stubborn brat!"

The phantom thief leaned in closer on his tippy-toes, his sinister voice a mere whisper. "I told you, my beloved detective. You. Don't. Scare. Me. I don't care what you say or think. Insult me all you want - it won't change what I'm about to do." He let go of the taller boy's face and buried his hand in his pocket. Shuichi shivered again, flinching at the contact from the smaller boy's silky fingertips and, still blushing heavily, slightly averted his gaze.

"What do you mean-" Shuichi gasped as in the corner of his eye he watched the boy in the checkered scarf remove a pair of handcuffs from his pocket - it was the same pair he had snatched from the security guards earlier that night. He had more than a clear idea of what they were for. His eyes widened in horror and surprise. "No!"

"Yes!" He took his hand from Shuichi's chest and yanked his right arm forward, forcing the detective to release the jewel from one hand. Shuichi struggled against the boy's grasp howbeit, despite their size difference, he was too strong. **CLICK!** His wrist had been seized by the cold metal hugging his skin.

"No! Stop! Take it off right now!" The long haired boy attached the other side of the handcuffs to the closest shelf along the wall, ignoring Shuichi's resentful demands.

The thief took a couple of steps back and examined his work. "Nishishi... You look perfect right there! I think handcuffs _really_ suit you." He winked, biting his lip playfully watching his captive's face flush red. He walked back towards his prisoner. Indistinct voices from outside the room in the museum could be heard. It was the police! Help had arrived.

Shuichi held the stone tightly to his side. He _refused_ to let go. Not when he was this close. "Back off, psycho."

"Sorry, no can do!" He snaked his arms around the detective who frustratedly attempted to shake him off. He used his right hand to shove the gemstone out of Shuichi's grasp and used his left hand to catch it immediately withdrawing both hands afterwards and hopping back a few feet as if nothing had happened. "Ah, it's so pretty! Like you, detective. May I just say your eyes are as exquisitely stunning as _this_ sparkling treasure?" He held it up to the light and looked through the stone, emphasising his point.

"Hey! Give that back! And I don't want your flattery." Shuichi reached forwards to grab onto the boy but his movement was limited and stopped by the handcuffs. 

_BANG! BANG! BANG!_ Both boys turned their attention towards the door being pounded on. Shuichi sighed in defeat. He had failed. If only help had arrived sooner...

"Hahaha! Looks like our time together is up! I'm afraid I have to go now, my beloved detective. You and your cute bashful expressions were a _lot_ of fun." He sarcastically blew a kiss at the boy he had claimed his new favourite toy and, clutching the amethyst under his arm, he climbed the shelf closest to the window beside Shuichi and began to open it. "I'll see you soon! I know this isn't the last time we'll meet. I can't wait to play with you again! And that certainly was _not_ a lie. Make sure you excite me because I'll do my best to excite you too! Take care, Saihara!" And with that, he wriggled out of the window disappearing into the pitch black sky, beckoned by the twinkling stars under the ghostly glow of a full moon.

"No! Wait! Come back!" But it was already too late. Both the phantom thief and the amethyst had been engulfed by the twilight. Shuichi Saihara had failed the case. He failed himself, his uncle and his parents. He stared off out the window and thought about what the enigmatic boy had said. _I know this isn't the last time we'll meet._ He was definitely right about that! They'd meet again and _then_ Shuichi would unmask the phantom thief!

The door slammed open and in spilled police officers and reporters, to Shuichi's humiliation. The room had been trashed with shards of glass scattered across the shelves and floor, along with boxes and wood planks piled from where they had fallen. It was like an obstical course of mayhem. After wading through the river of debris they asked the detective questions about who the phantom thief was and what happened and Shuichi answered absent-mindedly, the only thoughts circulating his head were those of confusion and anger at himself. He _almost_ had him. But he was called the phantom thief for a reason, Shuichi had a thorough understanding of why now. Apologetic security guards helped the handcuffed boy free his wrist from its metal captor and offered him a ride home for the trouble they had put him through. Shuichi penitently accepted their request with a small smile. 

From a rooftop several buildings away, the cloaked villain in white hidden out of sight smiled at the flashing of red and blue lights in distress. A woman with long tawny hair pulled back into a tight pigtails approached him, standing at his side. Straight bangs covered her eyes, shadowing her studious expression. Two long strands of hair hung at the sides of her face. 

"Boss. The amethyst?" She held her pallid hands out expectantly.

He placed the gemstone into her hands, still watching the police lights. He was thinking about the fun he'd had that night. A game of cat and mouse sure sounded like a blast. No one had managed to almost stop him before, this detective was something special. He smiled to himself. 

"What took you so long? We were all worried beginning to think you'd been caught!" She snapped at him like a concerned mother.

"Oh? I was caught. Caught up in a game of hide and seek! Nee-heehee." He turned his head towards his ally flashing her a grin, hands behind his head.

"You wha- Okay. You'd better explain to me what the hell happened tonight as soon as we get back to HQ. We need to hurry and leave, the guys are gonna leave without us if we don't get there now. I only managed to get them to wait a little longer because I begged them." She huffed, impatiently grabbing his arm and began to drag him away from the edge of the roof.

"You _begged_ them? Always knew you were into that kinky degrading shi- OW!" His head was greeted with a sudden smack.

"Move." Pulling the shorter boy along, the pair were swallowed by the shadows.

-

Shuichi arrived home and thanked the security guard for the ride as he stepped out of the black van. It was almost midnight as he walked up to the door of his building, removing a thin, slightly bent, key card from his pocket and placed it on the card reader. He lived on the ninth floor of a fifteen storey flat in the middle of the city. The towering building was old, as were most of its residents but Shuichi saw this as a positive thing; there wasn't much commotion so no one distracted him whilst he was working or kept him up at night. Shuichi liked silence, and the rent was cheap which made this a perfect place to live. The door opened and the exhausted detective sauntered inside and headed towards the lift.

His head was a mess of self-hatred, frustration and anger. No wonder his parents didn't want him - he was pathetic and useless. He couldn't perform the simplest of tasks and he detested himself for it. His parents had gone overseas for business and left Shuichi with his uncle to look after him, Shuichi was incredibly grateful to his uncle for taking him in and treating him like his own child. His mother was a screenwriter and his father was an actor. The world saw them as talented celebrities but Shuichi didn't think they were anything special. And why should he? He had no respect for the people who neglected him as a child, but deep down he unconsciously wanted his parents to acknowledge him and treat him like their son. 

The doors of the lift opened and he wobbled out. His apartment room number was 9-3: the third room on the right from the lift. He progressed down the hall and once outside his door, he pressed his card against the reader once again and entered lethargically slamming the door behind him.

_A detective who couldn't solve a case. Pathetic._

He slid his back down the door and put his head in his hands. He knew it was okay to make mistakes. He knew no one was perfect, too. And he knew that there would be more opportunities to catch the phantom thief. He'd catch that sneaky serpent and have him locked up for the rest of his wasted, criminal life. Yeah that's what he'd do, and it would feel _great._ Telling himself these things made him feel slightly better. His phone began vibrating in his pocket making the boy jump. Fumbling for his phone removed the device from his pocket and checked his notifications. Unknowingly, a small black card fell from his pocket to the floor. 

_Missed call from Kyoko Kirigiri 23:38_  
 _Missed call from Kyoko Kirigiri 23:35_  
 _Missed call from Kaito Momota 23:34_  
 _Missed call from Kaito Momota 23:31_  
 _Missed call from Kyoko Kirigiri 23:30_  
 _Missed call from Kyoko Kirigiri 23:27_  
 _Missed call from Kyoko Kirigiri 23:22_  
\------------------  
 _14 other messages. Unlock to view._

He was in deep trouble now. He unlocked his phone swiping his finger across the screen trying to not screw up inputing his complicated password pattern. He got up from the floor and brushed himself off, dialing Kyoko's number.

"Hello? Kyoko I'm sorry I couldn't answer your calls I was at the museum I-" His panicked voice was fast and shaky.

"Thank god you answered! Everyone was so worried about you." She interrupted the frenzied male seemingly panicked herself despite her calm tone.

"E-Everyone? What are you talking about?" The girl's words only made him feel even more nervous.

"I was there Shuichi. I saw everything. I saw you snatch the amethyst and run away with it. That was very brave, Shuichi, but it could've been dangerous. I snuck out of the room before anything could happen to me, I wouldn't have been able to do anything if I had stayed there." She explained.

"I had to do something, Kyoko! We took the case didn't we? It's a strong belief of mine that all cases should be seen through until the very end. I couldn't just run away! Not when I was so close! Why did you run, anyway? We could've cornered him in that room and-"

"Who do you think called the police Shuichi?" Her voice was harsh and firm.

"W-What? Kyoko you- Thank you..." He gasped into the phone feeling guilty for thinking his rival was a coward. 

"You _should_ thank me, anything could have happened to you and no one would've saved you. It's what friends are for. Like you said, we took the case. I'll do whatever is necessary to keep you safe and solve the case. However desperate I was to catch the thief, your safety is always my top priority. Don't do dumb things in the future." Her voice softened. This was one of her rare moments when her stone cold personality faded and she became friendly and kind.

"What were all the missed calls for? Even Kaito called me huh?" He put her on speaker and began scrolling through the long list of unanswered calls.

"I was concerned about your safety. You didn't pick up so I assumed you were either ignoring me or you were in trouble. I asked Kaito to call you too, in case you were in fact avoiding me." The lilac haired girl confessed.

"I wouldn't ignore you! My phone was on silent and I was hiding in the most unpleasant place there was... I'm sorry for alarming you. But there is something I really want to know... How did you know that the phantom thief's next heist was at Korekiyo Shinguji's museum? You didn't have the calling card." He kicked off his neat, black shoes beside the door and walked further into the living room.

"Detective's intuition." She stated roguishly.

"That can't be true. There's no way you just _guessed_!" He took off his striped jacket, a little dusty here and there, and slumped it over a chair, then removed his hat and hung the accessory off the side of it. He smoothed his dishevelled hair down and plopped himself down on his large, raisin black sofa. The vintage fabric couch creaking as he jumped onto it as if it were asking to the boy to not be so careless. 

"You're right, I didn't. I was joking." She paused cautiously as if she was about to tell a big secret. "I was where I said I would be when I left the office earlier."

"You said you were going to catch the phantom thief." Shuichi pointed out, not sure where she was trying to go with this.

"Yes, I did. I went to Professor Idabashi's laboratory to gather information and search for more evidence." She continued her story.

Shuichi shot forward in his seat. "Did you find anything significant we could use to identify the thief?"

"Maybe. If you can use drawings and scrawly handwriting to identify them." There was a vague hint of distaste in her voice to accentuate her point.

"Drawings? Handwriting? What did you find?" Shuichi knew he could count on Kyoko to discover crucial evidence. She was a skillful detective after all.

"Yes. It appeared to have fallen out of his pocket whilst escaping. I found it inside a vent at the very back of the laboratory. It wasn't easy squeezing inside of it. The thief would need to be very small and slim to crawl through it. Whoever this phantom thief is also must have had a map of the place considering they were aware of the concealed escape routes." She noted. Picking up even the smallest of details made her an excellent detective; Shuichi idolised how she was always able to gather perceptive observations.

"What was the drawing of?" Shuichi asked, eager to learn more. He wanted to know everything he could about the phantom thief.

"The layout of the museum. After I found it I began researching the museum online and read about the new display unveiling tonight. Immediately I realised that the thief was after the amethyst and I showed up at the museum anticipating the crook's arrival. As I thought, he arrived at the exact same place. I wouldn't have known the location of his next robbery otherwise. Leaving that paper there was kind of clumsy, don't you think?" She explicated comprehensively.

"I think... Maybe he left it there on purpose. For instance, he might have had another map or there is a possibility he memorised it. He's oddly cunning. At the museum when he found where I was hiding he told me that it was a game and he liked playing with me. From what I've gathered about him, he likes a challenge. He said no one has ever stepped up to him before - perhaps leaving the paper at the laboratory and having it found is what he was aiming for." Shuichi rebutted with a yawn, rubbing his tired eyes.

"Mayhap you're right... Good work today, detective. I'm proud of you. You sound tired, but that's understandable after what's happened today. Goodnight." She bid him farewell and hung up the phone without waiting for a reply.

"Goodnight." He smiled, talking to himself. He lazily climbed off the sofa and unbuttoned his white shirt stumbling drowsily towards the bathroom. 

His apartment wasn't spacious but it was big enough for Shuichi to live comfortably. He was out most of the time anyway and he lived by himself; just a living room, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom were all he needed so he didn't care to complain. The bathroom was big enough to fit perhaps three people at once, but never had there been an occasion where there was three people in his bathroom. 

Teal green tiles bordered the walls enveloping the room with peace and tranquility - the walls in here stood out from the gloomy, dark walls of the other rooms. Ceramic white tiles cloaked the floor like a blanket of snow. There was a narrow, cramped shower in the corner closest to the door. Beside it, next to the far wall, was a rectangular sink above a cupboard filled with necessities and toiletries. An oval mirror clung onto the wall above it, slightly tilted to the right throwing off the 'orderly' atmosphere the room aimed to give off. Opposite the spruce door was the small, round toilet - nothing grand.

He staggered sleepily towards the sink, picking up his toothbrush and wetting it under the tap. He put toothpaste onto the wet bristles and rinsed it again before putting it into his mouth and brushing his teeth. His mind wandered back to the previous events that night. Who was the phantom thief? And then he remembered the velvety fingertips of the criminal brushing airily across his pale face. He recalled the catty, slinky tone to his voice and how the smaller boy whispered so eerily into his ear sending chills down his spine. He recollected how the villain had coiled his arms around the detective's svelte waist and how uneasy it had made him at the time. No one had ever done those things to him, let alone a stranger he was hunting down. Even if the other male had only been doing these things to distract Shuichi and break his concentration, the detective couldn't help but ruminate about the surreal events. The memory of the thief's amorous advances burned Shuichi's cheeks hot beyond an attractive rosiness. He leaned down and spat in the sink, avoiding looking at the mirror which had portrayed the boy's cheeks, a blanket of cherry across his florid face. God, the phantom thief must think he was weird. 

He flossed and rinsed his minty mouth out with mouthwash, the bottle almost empty. A twinge of embarrassment dropped in his stomach. For some unfathomable reason, he couldn't get the arcane man who had humiliated him out of his head. He splashed his flushed face with cold water before leaving the room and trotted into his bedroom.

His room was probably a little less spacious than the living room; it wasn't huge but it was habitable. There was a petite desk opposite the door in the corner of the room, the wood a polished mahogany with paper scattered and piled upon it. There was a stool with a leather seat tucked underneath it. His narrow bed with an indigo duvet and pillow was pressed against the walls, a large window at the foot of it. Two other windows stood beside it to the left, a bit of space between each. The curtains were a dark gray, synchronised with the monotonous colours of the room. A chest of drawers and a wardrobe stood next to one another at the opposite wall.

Shuichi put his phone on charge and placed it on his desk, not bothering to clean up the papers he had accidentally knocked off - he could do that tomorrow when he wasn't half asleep. He took the unbuttoned shirt off and dumped it on the floor, his belt landing on top of the heap. He threw himself into his bed pulling the duvet out from underneath him. 

_God,_ today had been a _disaster._ But tomorrow was going to be a new day and a fresh start for him! He knew everything would be okay; it wasn't his fault he couldn't protect the amethyst. He forced the negative thoughts from his head and tried to forget how much of a failure he was and closed his eyes. The low rumble of cars passing by hummed soothingly accompanying the laboured breaths escaping the boy's mouth, and soon enough his consciousness had slipped away. He was fast asleep.

Tomorrow would be a new day.


	3. A Cunning Scheme

The journey back to HQ was a long one filled with the usual tedious, repetitive rant about heist safety. The experienced thief had heard it countless times already - he knew that he didn't have the time to play around and that he needed to take his job seriously, but in his eyes he was the leader and that meant he could do whatever he wanted. Playing around during missions had become habitual and allowed the immature male to escape the tedium of daily life. Anyway, he needed to have _some_ fun once in a while. Was that so much to ask? Of course he loved HQ; he'd dedicated several years of his life, along with the other members of the organisation, to renovating the underground lair and making it habitable for himself and his friends, but even an exciting place like headquarters could be so boring sometimes. They'd been living there since they were children and the same black and white walls of bolted metal plates everyday became dreary, dull and uninteresting. There were ten rooms in total, a few quite big implying more work was necessary for them to look as impressive as they did. Although, they were all the same, more or less, if you removed the furniture and homely decorations they had dotted the place with to distract themselves from the fact that it was all just one large metal prison.

The thief sat in the back of the checkered van, the vehicle unmarked, with the pigtailed brunette who had been yapping at him like a needy dog for the past fifteen minutes.

"And that's why it's important you listen to what we tell you! Brother will be angry at you again! And Minerva! Isn't that right, Vigour?" Her voice high and loud, she leaned into the front of the van where a tall, muscly man in a red afro was driving. A slender male with short brown hair and a fringe swept into curtains sat beside him, fiddling about with the amethyst. He went from examining the stone to recording information on his phone, the screen glowing a hazy bright blue as if it were a ghost, a poorly taken photograph. It was a repetitive process so the man was incredibly concentrated on his task.

"Sorry boss, but I'm gonna have to side with Pigtails on this one. It was a really close call this time. Did you see how many police were there? You could've been arrested and DICE would have no choice but to disband without you. We can't take those risks no matter how fun you find them." The man named Vigour blurted out quickly, seeming as if he just wanted to shut the bossy girl up, but he had a valid point. He checked the rear view mirror cautiously.

"Yeah, yeah whatever you say. This time it _was_ necessary though! I had to stick around longer than expected because a sneaky little detective tried to snatch the goods! I wasn't going to abort the mission you dummies! You're all so MEAN!" The plum haired boy snapped in more of a whine than anything else as he removed the clip from his hair. His hair fell as he shook his head, his tentacle-like hair snaking out in all directions. "Mmm... That's much better..." He mumbled to himself, satisfied.

"Detective? You were stopped by a detective? Are you sure? Boomer made sure that anyone who breathed in that gas would be-" She smacked her hand sharply, the slapping sound of skin on skin ear piercing. "Comatose." Pigtails sat forwards in her seat and rested her elbows on her knees. She donned a white dress, torn at the bottom scruffily with a ragged hem highlighting its femininity. Her legs were covered by tight white trousers hugging her legs which she tucked behind the tongue of her black and purple shoes. She used one hand to fiddle with the checkered scarf covering her flat chest and shoulders, toying with the soft fabric between her fingertips.

"Of course I'm sure! When Ego turned the lights back on when I was about to steal the amethyst I saw him trying to escape with it! He didn't _look_ like he was sleeping to me, Pigtails! I chased him around a storage room and threw things at him and made a whole shelf of pots smash off of the wall in front of him! That wasn't the funnest part though! _Then_ I handcuffed him to a shelf and snatched the gem right out of his hands! Nee-heehee he was great fun! More fun than you guys! You don't let me do _anything_ when _I'm_ the leader!" His voice was childish and innocent turning whiny and pouty within his last few sentences. His violet eyes sparkled under his mask as he spoke about the boy from earlier that evening - he didn't hate the detective at all, rather he found the taller male quite interesting and thought about all the ways they could play together next.

"Oh, I see... Tell me about this detective. Was he old and ugly? Did he smoke a pipe and speak with a heavy British accent?" She tauntingly twirled her thick hair around her slender fingers.

The leader scoffed. "Actually he was rather good looking. He was young, Pigtails! He naturally long eyelashes and big golden eyes that I could see my reflection in! He was so easy to read too! You'd think that a detective would be able to mask their emotions but nope! Not this particular detective. It was kind of cute how he couldn't hide his embarrassment or his flustered cheeks. He was pretty daring trying to stop me from stealing the gemstone like that." He seemed to brag about the man he'd just met like he was something precious to him, although it was more of mocking the detective than admiring him.

The man in the passenger seat in the front of the van was listening to their conversation. "You say he had this amethyst hm? If you want me to, I can check it for fingerprints and we can find his identity that way. I'm very good at things like this, you know." He had a slightly nasally voice, his volume rising when he bragged about himself. His ocean blue eyes were still glued to the purple stone.

The thief laughed. "Oh no need, Ego! I asked him who he was and he told me his name." He flicked his hands inwards, rolling his eyes.

"And? His name?" The brown haired male huffed, he hated when his boss purposely danced around simple answers just to make others ask more questions.

His face lit up with a devious smirk as the van pulled into a garage on the outskirts of the city. " _Shuichi Saihara._ "

Shuichi woke up to the consistent cries of his door bell screaming for him to get out of bed and answer it. With a tired, aggravated groan the detective reluctantly climbed out of bed and rubbed his eyes, wanting to sleep in a little longer and sulk about letting the thief escape. He walked over to his desk and checked the time: _**8:37 am.** Already? _ He huffed, picking up his crumpled shirt off of the floor and slipping his arms into it. "I'm coming!" He shouted as he approached the door, buttoning his shirt up clumsily in a sleepy haze. He peered through the peep hole to see a girl with cheerful pink eyes and straight, blonde, shoulder length hair which had been beautifully decorated with silver music note hairpins. He unlocked the door and opened it, smiling warmly at her.

"Hey, come in. Sorry for leaving you out here. I was sleeping haha." He laughed nervously stepping backwards from the door to invite the girl inside.

"I can tell - you have some serious bed head!" She giggled jokingly as she walked in. She was Kaede Akamatsu: one of Shuichi's close childhood friends. She was an optimistic girl who wore a smile on her face wherever she went, always offering charismatic words of encouragement to those who needed it. She donned a long sleeved white shirt underneath a sleeveless pink jumper, an orange tie tucked neatly under it. She wore a pleated purple skirt decorated with black music staves that created an actual melody when played, though, the girl had never tried it. Dark purple knee-high socks embraced her skinny legs and she wore beige shoes, the laces and soles an attractive dark brown.

"Wha- Oh! Sorry!" He scrambled to neaten up his hair with his hands. A faint pink dusted his cheeks with embarrassment.

He jumped when he heard his friend gasp loudly. "Shuichi, look at this mess!" The blonde girl huffed. "For a detective you're really unorganised! There's clothes everywhere!" She spun around to face the scruffy boy, hands on her hips.

"I was going to clean it! It's only a few clothes anyway, I was gonna just throw them in the washing machine later." Shuichi closed the door, protecting his elderly neighbours from hearing his upcoming lecture.

"Shuichi, if you're going to clean, do it now. I'll wait. I'll explain why I'm here afterwards so you'd better hurry up. You're gonna need your place clean anyways." She beamed walking towards the sofa, picking up the TV remote from the coffee table and turning the device on.

"H-Hey! Kaede wait!" The boy called out to his friend but stopped himself from continuing. Kaede was stubborn in the sense that if she wanted something done then it'd happen one way or another, luckily all her methods were the complete opposite of violent. She was harmless. Kaede ignored Shuichi and sat on the couch flicking through the channels. Shuichi, sighing in defeat, began picking up the clothes from the past few days that had been discarded nonchalantly across the floors in all four rooms of his apartment. Kaede really did wonder how Shuichi was still alive considering he couldn't clean up after himself without being told to. Apart from the clothes scattered on the floor and the shoes kicked here and there, the property was more or less spotless.

A few minutes later Shuichi returned to the warm living room. "Kaede, I'm done. Now please tell me why you came here this early." He stood behind the back of the couch and rested his arms on the top of it, leaning over the girl's head to talk to her.

"Well," She started, taking a deep breath, "I heard about last night from Kyoko and I figured you'd be pretty bummed out about it, so I wanted to invite you to stay at mine for a while until you feel better. Only for a few days! Pretty please Shuichi!" She bat her eyelashes at him innocently, her heart full of good intention.

"You don't have to go to such trouble for me Kaede, really. I'm fine here so you don't need to worry about me. It's not that big a deal. I'll get over it eventually." He looked away from her feeling a pang of guilt in his stomach for rejecting her offer. He covered his mouth as he spoke.

"You're just saying that, I know you, Shuichi. You're saying you're fine and it's not a big deal but I know that you're beating yourself up over it internally, and I really want to help cheer you up. No, I have to help cheer you up! Please, Shuichi. Please trust me." She was right; Shuichi wasn't okay at all. All night his mind had been plagued with regret. Anger. Despair. A cyclone of emotion. A tsunami of overwhelming anguish. He had never screwed up so badly before and he couldn't forgive himself for it. He needed a friend right now, and Kaede was there for him.

"Alright, I'll stay for a few days. But only until next Saturday, got it? I'll have to ask Kaito to come over some time during the week and check up on the apartment I guess." He smiled softly at her as her face lit up happily. Shuichi admired Kaede's ability to cheer anyone up no matter the circumstance - the girl practically radiated positivity. Ever since they were kids Kaede had always been there holding his hand and supporting him through thick and thin. He'd be a wreck without her and he was well aware of this. He adored her and her bright smiles and occasionally he'd catch himself wishing that one day he could be like her, a happy person brimming with positivity, optimism and confidence.

"Yay! Okay! Go pack some clothes to wear and sleep in! You don't have to bring much if you don't want to; I have a washing machine at home and I'll do as many washes as you'd like. Oh and while you're at it, maybe you should wash your face and fix your hair." She winked at him whilst saying that last part. Shuichi was her best friend and she was extremely protective over him. She strongly believed that he only deserved the best - he deserved the world. Shuichi was a shy boy, anybody could easily conclude this about the male, but underneath his walls of nerves he was kind, intelligent and courageous. He really didn't give himself enough credit and failed to realise how amazing he really was, and Kaede had made it her goal many years ago to make him understand his value and importance.

9 am had rolled around when Shuichi emerged from his bedroom in his usual attire carrying a heavy rucksack full of black pinstriped shirts, matching trousers and black t-shirts and shorts to sleep in. "I'm ready to go... Actually, one moment." He walked back into his room to his desk and collected his phone and its charger, stuffing the lead into his bag and the phone into his pocket. "Now I'm ready."

The pink eyed girl beamed. "Great!" She opened the front door. "After you, detective." Shuichi left the room and his friend followed, locking the door behind her. She gave the key card back to Shuichi afterwards. "To my house!" She sang, skipping down the corridor towards the lift. Shuichi laughed to himself under his breath at his friend and hurried to catch up.

Kaede and Shuichi had journeyed into town to catch a bus, which had been delayed an enormous twenty minutes due to the traffic. The sun was still blazing and people were once again going on days out to enjoy the hot weather. The two sat at the back of the bus, Shuichi beside the window.

He stared at the blur of the streets passing by. The colourful shops and trees and people merged into one scrambled haze as if the glass were a window into his mind and memories. The voices of people talking on the bus faded into one quiet hum as he began to daydream. He sighed heavily fogging up his view of the city. Even though Kaede had been trying her best so far that day to take his mind off of the enigma who had given him the most frustrating night of his life, his mind kept wandering to the previous night and he couldn't get the male out of his muddled head. His tormenting laughter resonated throughout his entire body replaying over and over like a broken record player. Every time he closed his eyes he could see the criminal's devious grin and those big, violet eyes working their way into his soul.

A soft hand tapped his shoulder bringing him back down to reality. "Shuichi? Are you okay? You're thinking about him again, aren't you? You know, it's gonna do you no good if you keep worrying about it! Everyone makes mistakes, Shuichi. You need to make mistakes so you can learn from them and not make the same one again. When I was learning to play the piano I messed up all the time, I still do when I'm learning new pieces, but I use those mistakes to carry myself forwards and you can do it too!" She placed her hand on top of Shuichi's gently to show him that she was there for him. Her hands were warm and soft like her compassionate personality.

Shuichi smiled appreciatively, a thankful beam blossoming across his pale face. "Thank you, Kaede. That made me feel better." His voice was a low whisper, but the girl understood every word of gratitude he uttered.

"Anytime." She whispered back, her cheeks a faint pink. Helping other people made her feel great about herself, there was something so satisfying about watching someone go from gloomy and miserable to joyful and blissful after listening to her words. She not only managed to touch their hearts - their reactions touched hers too. It was the same with her music: she played to make people smile. It was her biggest motivation. The bus pulled over at another stop. "Ah, Shuichi, this is our stop. Let's go." She tugged his sleeve gently and led him off of the bus onto a quiet street corner. Trees garnished the pavements, the leaves a shimmering emerald on the sunlight.

"Which way now?" Shuichi asked, hauling the heavy bag up over his shoulder again.

"I live right across the road over.... There!" She pointed far down the road at a house on the opposite side of the street. "Come on! I'll lead the way." She began to walk, a skip in her step.

"Wait up!" The boy called as he stumbled after her trying to catch up.

They approached Kaede's house. She'd just moved in around a month ago so Shuichi had never been over before, which allowed her to settle in. The outside of the property was an angelic white, with an orangey-brown door and roof. Her front garden was small due to there being a porch. The healthy green grass had been cut and colourful, pultritudinous flowers colonised the soil behind the smooth, new fence.

Kaede unlocked the door and sauntered in, waiting for her friend to join her. "What are you waiting for? Come inside already! I wanna show you around today!" She wiggled one finger at him, beckoning him to come closer, which he did. He was eager to see her house, she'd put a lot of time and work into making enough money to afford it and now she was able to live in an establishment of her very own. He was so proud of her, she was hardworking and determined. She made it look so easy. He followed the girl inside and shut the door carefully behind him.

The first thing he saw when he stepped inside was the stairs. The steps were an unblemished caramel, contrasting beautifully with the white banisters. The walls were a delicate creamy white with a pale orange stripe running through the centre across the length of the hallway. The whole house seemed to follow this appeasing colour scheme, it was a magnificent combination. It suited Kaede; her optimism and huge heart were a perfect combination too. The floor was a laminated oak, stretching across the whole of the first floor of the house. Three white doorways stood to the left of the stairs - two were on the wall opposite them and the final was down the corridor at the far end. Shuichi would explore those later when Kaede let him, it would be rude to snoop through her house without permission.

"So, what do you think? Nice huh?" She looked increasingly pleased with herself, but it was understandable. So far the place seemed so spectacular and homely and Kaede really did deserve the place she worked endlessly for.

"Y-Yeah. It's really impressive. It suits you, you know." Shuichi looked around on the spot. It was already much nicer than his shabby apartment and he hadn't even seen any of the rooms yet.

"I tidied the living room up this morning so it'd be spotless for you when you came. Put your stuff down beside the couch for now, you can take it upstairs later; I've got a guest room I've prepared for you." She opened the door closest to them and walked inside, Shuichi followed quickly not wanting to be left behind.

A captivating floral scent wafted from the room and the detective breathed it in, the fragrance sweet and conciliating. It gave the room a relaxing atmosphere and lured the boy further inside. He sat comfortably on the curvaceous beige camel back sofa, then rested his rucksack on the left arm of it. The room was larger than his living room and kitchen combined. Tall windows reaching from the floor to the ceiling decorated the wall allowing the outside world to have a clear view of the inside of the building. Long, beige curtains with intricate brown flower patterns that danced across it hung elegantly over the windows. In front of the windows was a step onto a large circular platform holding a grand piano, big and sophisticated looking. The black surface was shining and appeared to have been polished thoroughly, you could see your reflection in the wood. Shuichi was anticipating listening to the girl play; her music was one of the most beautiful sounds Shuichi had ever heard. A large chandelier glistened in the daylight above it like a bejewelled cobweb. It dripped with diamonds and jewels, elevating the room with a luxuriously grand touch. Though they were all visibly fake, they didn't affect the overall striking effect they gave off. In the centre of the room was a low, rectangular glass coffee table in front of a large flatscreen TV hanging off of the wall. A tall, elegant lamp stood proudly in the corner of the room beside the sofa.

"Get comfortable, I'll be back in a minute. You want a drink?" She passed him the TV remote with a smile.

"Coffee please, only if it isn't any trouble. No sugar." He replied feeling rather awkward about asking and being left alone in the room of an unfamiliar house.

"Got it!" She skipped out of the room quickly, humming to herself cheerfully as always.

Shuichi was now by himself. Not knowing what to do, he turned the TV on and began switching through channels looking for something interesting to watch. He wasn't interested in all those reality TV shows; they were all about gossip and drama and Shuichi _hated_ gossip. Gossip was just a manipulation of the truth, a speculation of a person spread around to harm them. The detective hated lies. Why was it so hard to tell the truth? He preferred watching crime shows to sharpen his skills and see if he could come up with his own deductions about the crime and the culprit. That was much more interesting than any reality show there has ever been. Suddenly Shuichi froze up and stopped changing the channels when he saw the thing he had been dreading. He put the remote down on the coffee table in front of him with shaky arms, his eyes glued to the screen.

A man dressed in a smart silver suit had been speaking and Shuichi had only began listening about halfway through, his stomach beginning to churn in frustration. "'The infamous phantom thief managed to escape again despite the valiant efforts of detective Shuichi Saihara' Mr Korekiyo Shinguji, owner of the Shinguji Museum of Anthropology stated last night after the daring young detective perused the thief-" Shuichi didn't want to listen anymore and switched the taunting television off. He could've sworn that the world was out to get him, and a painful throbbing sensation burned in his chest. He just wanted to go home cry.

He got up and walked towards the piano. Kaede's playing could lift anyone's mood. He sat down on the black, cushioned stool and lifted the cover from the keys gently, cautious to not break anything as if one false move would destroy it, sending the piano collapsing into a useless pile of rubble. His eyes scanned the chorus of black and white sprawled neatly in front of him, it was a mesmerising sight. He was swiftly brought out of his daze when his fingers pressed the keys and a loud collision of noises erupted from the instrument.

"Shuichi, I don't think that's how you play, silly." Kaede pushed the door open with her hip carrying two steaming mugs of coffee, one holding significantly less liquid than the other. She approached Shuichi signalling with a finger for him to move from the stool implying that she was going to play. The piano princess was going to show the amateur how it was done. He quickly got up and stepped back before taking the hot cup off of his friend. The girl placed hers upon the top of the piano and sat down, fidgeting to get comfortable.

"Y-Yeah sorry. If you don't mind me asking... Could you play something for me?" He took a sip of his drink, pursing his lips at the scorching beverage.

"Yup! It's no problem at all! Come sit next to me, I'll move over." She patted the seat as she shuffled over. Shuichi beamed as he joined her. She began to play, her fingers gliding gracefully across the keys.

A harmonious melody briskly danced through the air expelling the negativity from the detective's head. He closed his eyes and took in the sweet aroma of the room through his nose. His friend's music really was the most serene, heavenly sound on earth and he adored it. Kaede was a famous-in-her-area musician who was extremely talented, not to mention incredibly underrated. She began learning to play from a very young age thus explaining her skill. Her talent made her a victim of teasing and bullying in the past, earning her the title 'Piano Freak' but she never let it stop her from doing the thing she loved, and Shuichi admired her for it. Her ability to change someone's mood from miserable to cheerful with her magical music alone was a mesmerising miracle. He often listened to her play when he was upset, stressed or angry hence she could make it all vanish with a single instrument. It was as if all the worry and anxiety just melted away. He truly felt at peace with the world.

"Th-This is beautiful!" The detective murmured, in a trance. He smiled to himself and tipped his head back a little after sipping his coffee again, allowing himself to focus on the beautiful music.

"Yeah, it's one of my favourites. It's called 'Clair De Lune' by Claude Debussy. It was one of the first songs I ever played, I won a competition with it when I was six. It took me a long time to learn, too. All the effort I put into learning to play it really paid off." When she spoke about her passion, she seemed to drift off into a tranquil land of her own. It made Shuichi happy that she had played a piece so important to her to a person like him.

"It's peaceful. I like it." The detective hummed, both hands on his blue mug savouring the warmth, almost as warm as his heart at that very moment.

"So Shuichi, tell me about the thief. What happened last night? What was he like? You don't have to talk about it if it's going to upset you." She turned to him slightly, still focusing on playing the piece.

Shuichi opened his eyes and looked down. "It's okay, I don't mind." He took a deep, shaky breath. "Yesterday my uncle paired me up with Kyoko Kirigiri, the famous detective, to capture and unmask the phantom thief. Kyoko left to do her own thing leaving me and my uncle alone. My uncle gave me the calling card the thief left at the previous crime scene and then he left too. The hint was really peculiar and I had no idea what it possibly could've meant until I went to get help. I saw a poster for the Shinguji Museum of Anthropology's great unveiling that night and then I knew that was the location the thief would strike. I rushed to the museum and talked with Mr. Shinguji and made sure there was no way anyone could sneak in. I was very sure that the place was secure... Until that night... The lights blacked out and then when they came back on a man with a long, black cape, strange white clothes and a white masquerade mask appeared on top of the balcony which was blocked off with a 'No Entry' sign at the bottom of the stairs. He threw a can of gas into the crowd below and I instantly recognised this as some form of sleeping gas. I covered my mouth and nose and held my breath as I darted towards the display case holding the amethyst the thief came to steal. I took the stone and began to run to safety. People were collapsing all around me, it was horrifying. To be honest I didn't think I would make it as far as I did! The lights flicked off and back on again and the thief noticed me escaping with the jewel. He started to chase me. I ran into the storage room at the back of the museum and hid behind a dusty shelf lined with ancient pots and vases. He burst through the door, locked it trapping me inside with him and began throwing things around in an attempt to scare me out of hiding. I knew I was going to get caught eventually, his plan worked when he made me jump from throwing something at the shelf I was hiding behind. The impact made the vessels shatter above my head and on the wall in front of me. Kaede I swear- i-it was petrifying! I thought he didn't notice me jump and knock the shelf but I was wrong. He crept up behind me and scared me out of my hiding place. Then he handcuffed me to a shelf, ripped the amethyst from my hands and climbed through the window. The police only broke down the door moments after he'd escaped. I was so close and I-I failed." His voice grew quieter and began to wobble and stutters escaped his mouth as he recounted his story.

"You know... It doesn't sound like you failed to me. You did your best to prevent the theft - you had the decision to do something or just stand there and do nothing. You did the right thing Shuichi. You're an amazing detective, don't let that idiot make you feel like you're anything less." She was still playing, however the tiniest bit quicker now as mild anger built up inside her.

"You really think so? Because to me it just seems as if I've messed up." The boy's heart fluttered at her words.

"I know so. There's nothing more you could have done anyway. You didn't know what he was capable of, at least now you can be prepared for everything else he throws at you. You're very brave, Shuichi. Please don't be upset over it." Her voice was soft and loving like a mother soothing her upset child.

"Y-You're right... I feel like such an idiot for worrying so much about it. Thank you so, so much, Kaede." His intense expression of worry melted into one of thankfulness and gratitude. Damn she was amazing at reasoning with him.

"Sounds like you had one hell of a night huh? It's all over now, Shuichi." Her voice was sympathetic and soft as she continued to play majestically.

"Y-Yeah. I-It was. But that wasn't the strangest part of the evening..." He seemed to be focusing more and more on the thief's words and actions towards him.

"Why? What happened?" She was concerned and began to worry if the criminal had done anything harmful to her best friend.

"I-I don't know. It was really weird. He kept saying and doing all these eccentric things to me... He stroked my hair so gently it was unsettling, for a start. He called me cute and attractive and complimented my eyes... H-He grazed my face with his gloved fingertips... Cupped my chin, too. Just lots of unnecessary contact... Then he put his hand on my chest and began walking to back towards the wall and pinned me there. He handcuffed me to a shelf and told me handcuffs suited me and that I looked perfect there... And then... And then he wrapped his arms around my waist and it felt so strange. It gives me the chills every time I think about it. Everything about him makes my skin crawl." He stuttered uncomfortably unaware of the colour flooding to his cheeks.

Shuichi's ears were greeted with a clash of discordant notes as Kaede's fingers slipped. "H-He what? Are you alright? He didn't hurt you right? He seems like a total creep. Next time he touches you I'll make him regret it. Actually, there won't even be a next time!" She punched her fist.

"N-No it's alright, really. He didn't hurt me. He just did it to distract me. He seems to enjoy lying a lot too, now that I think about it." Shuichi, startled, replied trying to calm his friend down, although he did agree with his friend.

The girl sighed. "If you say so, but I'll always be here for you. I just don't want anyone toying with your feelings or body like that. You're not a ragdoll he can drag around relentlessly." She had noticed his pink cheeks when talking about the mysterious male, a volt of jealousy coursing through her veins despite the blush only being the result of the boy's embarrassment.

Shuichi didn't reply after that, an awkward silence enveloped the two. They sat together staring quietly at the keyboard not knowing what to say.

"Hey, Shuichi?" The pianist was the first one to break the agonising silence.

He looked at her, drinking his coffee quicker than before as it was cooler. "Yeah?" He spoke slowly.

"Do you... Maybe _like_ the thief?" An unsure expression of regret was painted across her pale face, the words pained her to say.

The detective almost choked. "What? No! Of course not! I hate him! He's a criminal I'm pursuing, Kaede. Nothing else. Anyway I don't even know who he is under the mask and I met him last night. May I remind you that last night was the scariest night of my life _because_ of him?" He retaliated pretty speedily in defence.

Kaede calmed down, not feeling so jealous anymore. She had liked Shuichi for years but never had the courage to confess to him. To her he was perfect: tall, not necessarily dark (unless you include the way he dressed and his hair), but definitely handsome. She thought he was way out of her league and that he deserved much better than some silly pianist. Anyway, she was still happy as good friends and wouldn't do anything to ruin what they already had, even though deep down it _hurt._ "Sorry, it was a stupid question." She laughed quietly. "Forget I said anything. How about you come upstairs with me? I'll show you to your room." She hopped off of the seat and held out her hand, not really expecting Shuichi to take it, but to make him stand up and follow her.

"Sure, let's go." He walked towards the door with Kaede, grabbing his bag from the sofa on his way out. They climbed the stairs and Kaede opened a door at the far left of the narrow corridor.

"This is your room. Unpack your things and make yourself at home! Don't leave clothes everywhere though. There's a washing basket in the bathroom for your dirty clothes if you need it. Meet me back downstairs once you're finished. I'll teach you how to play the piano with me if you'd like. I've also been writing some of my own songs! I could play them to you, too! There's a recital coming up in a few weeks, I need to practise anyways." She opened the door revealing a small room with a brown bed in the middle of the room, the headrest pressed against the wall. The room also had a wooden bedside cabinet with a small pale yellow lamp on top, a chest of drawers, a wardrobe and a big window with dark purple curtains. The walls were a creamy white whilst the floor was a chocolatey brown. Shuichi stepped into the cosy room and set his bag down on the end of the bed.

"Thanks a lot, Kaede. For everything. It means the world to me. I'm so glad I have an amazing friend like you." He opened his bag and started to draw clothes from it, piling them up neatly beside the rucksack. "That sounds great. I'll be down later." Hearing those words from the boy, the blonde girl smiled warmly and left.

-

The feet of two tall males and one female dressed head to toe in white echoed across the metallic flooring. Their checkered scarfs around their necks cast obscure shadows across the lifeless, grey walls; metal plates bolted onto one another. Some plates painted black, others painted white just to spice it up a little. The trio were on edge, one carrying the amethyst studying it as he walked. They had returned much later than expected due to their leader's game of hide and seek, and they knew they were going to take a thorough verbal assaulting from Shade and Minerva. They stopped dead in their tracks as they approached a large steel door.

"Do you think they're going to be mad? I don't want brother to scold me." Pigtails fiddled with her thumbs nervously.

"Obviously! We wouldn't be in this situation if we had left when I suggested. I'm always right, according to my calculations I'm wrong approximately 14% of the time. Although, the percentage is always changing." Ego gloated, stroking his hand through his short brown hair with his free hand.

"Stop bickering, you two. The longer you stay out here obsessing over the consequences of our botched mission, the more time we're wasting." The man with the red afro huffed, putting his muscly arms out in between the two.

"I wasn't bickering! Simply stating how I'm always correct. It was all little miss brother complex over there. Ha! 13% incorrect!" Ego sneered, sticking his pointy nose up into tension filled air.

"Just shut up." She pushed him forcefully as she placed her small hand on the fingerprint reader. The door rattled open slowly and the trio nervously entered.

The room was large and, like the rest of headquarters, had metal plates covering the walls and floor. The room wasn't exactly rectangular, it was an interesting L-shape venturing off to the right of the door. There was a wide shelf stretching across the left wall of the room. It held all sorts of essential things the organisation needed for their crimes, such as handcuffs, gas masks and two-way radios. In addition, there were disguises they used hung up on the shelves too, for instance suits with matching shoes, wigs, fake mustaches and a wide variety of glasses: sunglasses, monacles and even groucho glasses in a range of colours. Beside them were 10 masks, all distinctly divergent to each other. One mask suited for each individual member. At the back of the room there was a red carpet leading up three steps to a purple throne on a high platform. It was evident that this belonged to the leader himself, and everyone was prohibited from sitting on it - it was the crime of all crimes. Around the corner from the door was a large, blue velvet chair which could rotate, a girl with short lilac-brown hair in a bob sat in it. She was leaning forwards on the metallic desk concentrating on typing on her thin keyboard, a mouse lounging to the right of it. There were four screens in front of her; three screens were on the desk before her and a significantly larger one above them on the wall. To the right of the desk was a filing cabinet full of documents and folders, all of them strictly confidential. The girl spun around on the chair and faced the trio, a stern look on her face.

She wore a white jacket, much like everyone else except the chest had been torn exposing a large amount of cleavage due to her suit being 'too tight'. Her scarf was pulled to the side rather than the front, allowing an enhanced view of her chest. Tight white trousers hugged her legs snugly, the bottoms hanging over her black wedge boots. She wore beautiful silver earrings which were a gift from her boyfriend, Gadget. There had never been a day after she received them where she had taken them off.

"You're late. I expect a good reason for your tardiness." Her voice was sharp and threatening. She raised her eyebrow as she peered over at her friends. "Where is the boss? I need to have a long discussion with him about missions again, I see."

The girl in the white dress stepped forwards. "He ran off to hide on our way here. We didn't see him sneak off, sorry Minerva. He knew he was gonna get it for delaying the mission." Pigtails pouted slightly. "He got distracted by a detective, he said. Apparently he swiped the amethyst from the display case and tried to escape with it. The boss had to chase him down to retrieve it."

"A detective? Shouldn't he have been asleep?" Minerva folded her arms pushing her breasts higher up her chest.

"He's a sneaky one, being able to avoid Boomer's gas. He also managed to escape with the amethyst when I turned the lights off. They call him Shuichi Saihara." Ego stepped into the conversation.

The slender mauve haired girl turned back to her computer and promptly began to type, her fingers tapping away at the keyboard. "Shuichi Saihara... Alright. Thanks for telling me. I'll perform a few background checks on him to see if he's dangerous. We don't want him getting in the way of any more missions. This time was a very close call, the boss could've been caught and we would have to disband."

The door clattered open once again and a tall, skinny man with his hands in his pockets sauntered in. He had smooth tawny hair, quite long but not reaching past his shoulders, and a fringe he swept to the right side of his thin face covering his eye. He wore white attire similar to everyone else: a jacket resembling that of a straight jacket and long jeans covering most of his black shoes. His sleeves were baggy and covered his hands which were in his pockets - he rarely ever took them out. His face displayed an irritated expression as he paced swiftly into the control room. Ignoring his little sister, Vigour and Ego, he advanced towards Minerva who had heard him enter but was too busy working to turn around. He watched the screens as she typed.

"Minerva," He started, "I see that the mission was delayed. The boss was almost captured by the police." He turned towards the trio behind him. "I'm glad to see that you're safe, you three. I trust the boss is back too? Where is he? I need to speak with him."

"He's hiding somewhere to avoid talking with you." Vigour stated crossing his arms, an annoyed tone to his rough voice.

"Yeah! He's been a royal pain this whole time, Shade!" Pigtails added, hands on her hips.

Shade sighed crossly. "Vigour, go and find him. I don't care what you do, just make sure he's with me within an hour. Drag him kicking and screaming if you have to."

Vigour nodded understandingly at the instructions he had received and proceeded to leave the room to find their leader. Whilst they already had a leader, who was currently hiding, Shade was second in command and posed as the leader when the boss wasn't present. Shade was an extremely high ranked member of the organisation who made sure everything ran smoothly without obstruction. For instance, his job was to make sure blueprints had been drawn accurately, bombs and gadgets were fully functional (but most importantly unharmful and unlikely to cause death) before used in missions, to ensure the DICEMOBILE's gas tank was full, to check up on all the members frequently and update the boss on their activities, and so on.

The high ranked male strode forwards towards Ego. "Ego, allow me to see the amethyst for a moment." He held out his right hand, only his fingertips visible underneath his baggy sleeves.

Ego obediently handed him the gleaming gemstone. "On the way back I have been examining the stone." He folded his arms smugly. "According to my evaluation, the covalent structure of the amethyst is most definitely suitable for the project. It is unnecessary to proceed with planning another heist to acquire a different gemstone. This one will do perfectly, I can assure you. After all, I'm too intelligent to be incorrect."

Shade nodded, a small smirk spread across his face. "Understood. We shall proceed with the next phase of the plan then." He pulled a blueprint out of his pocket with his left hand and turned to his sister. "Pigtails, find Boomer and Gadget. They should be in the lab, if I remember correctly; I spoke to them briefly before I came here. Give them the amethyst and this blueprint and inform them they need to cut the gemstone to the precise measurements listed on the diagrams. Make sure to remind them that even the slightest slip up here will cost them their lives." He held out both items for the girl to take.

She took them from her brother. "B-But our number one rule is to never kill anybody! And, for the record, that includes each other!" She could tell her brother was in a terrible mood. She didn't have much evidence to go on to prove this, however the way he spoke about his friends and the unnoticeable bite to his voice was just enough to convince her.

"They're numbskulls - they'll just use it as motivation to carry out their orders correctly. You know how lazy they can be - too lazy to think most of the time. Anyway, they've only got one shot at this and we don't have the time to find another stone suitable for the project." He adduced, turning from her and walking back towards the heather haired girl at the computer.

"Got it." Pigtails skipped off hurriedly, relieved to escape her older brother's foul mood.

"So," Shade started, leaning over the back of Minerva's chair. "I heard about the detective incident. I presume you're executing background checks on him, no?"

Minerva sat back in her chair and stretched her back from where she had been hunched over. "Apprentice detective Shuichi Saihara. 21 years old. Birthday: September 7th. Works for the Saihara detective agency ran by a family member. And... That's all I've got for now." Her voice was monotonous and flat as she read from her several screens, a picture of the boy's face on the monitor on the right.

"Good work, Minerva." Shade, still looking over at the screen signalled for the egotistical man to come over. "Ego, take a good look at his face and the information provided. I want you to find and keep a strict eye on him. Report back any details on him you discover, for just a normal detective he seems... Interesting." A grin formed on his face.

"Understood, sir! I shall gather some helpful data regarding the given target. Leave it to me, I won't let you down." Ego saluted proudly, despite no one looking and left the spacious room, the door rattling as it opened and closed behind him.

"Now that we're alone without any distractions," The male moved to the side of the seat, leaning on the arm of the chair, "I'd like to discuss the plans for the next heist."

She looked from the monitors to the male beside her. "The plans are in the top drawer there, in the red file. Please check over them and tell me if any adjustments need to be made before they are carried out." She pointed at the tall filing cabinet to her right behind Shade, then returned to her work.

He slid the cabinet drawer open and began searching for the correct file. "The target has been confirmed?"

"Affirmative. I've also included a case study about her within the documents containing any relevant information we may need during the mission or in the future." Her gaze never once broke from the screens, her fingers rapidly pressing keys. "Oh, and it's too late to change the target now. The boss asked for the calling card to be made a couple of days ago. He took it with him on the heist."

Shade pulled the file out from the congregation of others, cramped together as if huddling for warmth - something this dark lair lacked. He began skimming through the text, occasionally nodding and humming in approval to himself. "You plan to retrieve it at a party? Are you aware that there will be a lot of people there? We can't pull the sleeping gas stunt again, and not safely on that scale either. The boss would end up falling victim to it even with a gas mask."

Minerva tried her best to suppress a deep, frustrated sigh at her superior doubting her intelligence. "Of course I am aware: I coordinate all of these missions, do I not? I dedicate hours of my day to extensive research on locations where successful heists can be carried out. There will be a lot of people there, but it'll be to our advantage. The building the party is going to be held at is very large and the people attending will only be situated in a few rooms. The boss will be in and out before anyone can notice. In addition there are plenty of hiding places there: I sent Aergia to investigate it earlier. I apologise for not discussing it with you or the boss sooner - I was in a hurry to complete the plans." She unknowingly began typing quite violently, which Shade picked up immediately. He could easily recognise that she was angry with him for questioning her when she knew what she was doing. His ability to read people, even without hearing them speak or seeing their face, was astonishing.

"Thank you for explaining. I won't interfere with your preparations as long as you've got them fully under control. The rest of the document looks fine. A flawless plan, I must say. Well, it is expected from someone as intelligent as you." He chose his words carefully as he closed the file and put it back where he found it. "Have you received any updates from Gadget regarding the robot prototype and the blueprints?" He stood upright no longer leaning on the chair.

"Yes. He successfully managed to disassemble model K0-K0 without damaging any parts. According to his analysis the parts are extremely sophisticated and will be increasingly helpful in completing the project. The blueprints were very detailed, moreover. If we wished to, we would possess the ability to create an AI just like the one Idabashi was making. It's not as advanced as his previous robot though - K1-B0 has an exceptionally elaborate design." She replied, calmer than before. Talking about machinery was something she thoroughly enjoyed and was an activity her boyfriend, Gadget, and she regularly relished in their free time.

Shade narrowed his eyes at his colleague. "If you knew K1-B0 would be better for the execution of the project then why did you decide to seize K0-K0?" Of course he trusted her, he just couldn't understand her way of thinking sometimes.

She tucked her hair behind her ears, careful to not let it get caught in her precious jewellery. "K1-B0 not only has a complex design, but is an immensely perspicacious AI which allows the robot to function like an actual human being. Kidnapping a self-aware robot would be challenging, not to mention that he probably has several trackers implemented inside him. It would be too much of a risk. We have the next best thing - that's all that matters."

The male nodded in understanding. "I admire how you always think of everything. You're very valuable to the organisation - well done." He patted her shoulder. "I should check up on Aergia and Smile. I haven't seen them for a while. You may return to your work." He turned from the reliable woman and strode towards the door, his footsteps echoing in the silence. He suddenly stopped before he reached the door.

Minerva turned around in her chair, hearing the boy stop walking. "Is there something the matter?"

"There is something I forgot to ask. When is the plan going to be put into action?" He didn't turn back.

"Exactly a week from now. Next Sunday - the 25th." She informed, curious about his uncharacteristic behaviour.

"And the target is unaware of her party being the location of our next heist?"

"Naturally. We wouldn't be where we are today if the victims could see it coming." Her computer bleeped and she spun back around to see the cause of the noise. "Uh oh... This can't be good." She whispered to herself under her breath.

It was as if he knew something no one else did. "Good to know. Thank you." He returned to walking towards the giant, metallic door. As he opened the door he muttered to himself quietly. "Mahiru Koizumi, huh? Her contribution to the project will be interesting."


	4. Return Of The Phantom (1/2)

The week had flown by in no time at all and Saturday had arrived. Shuichi had had quite the week with his childhood friend and had completely forgotten the phantom thief and that awful night. It was a sunny 1 pm as usual and the detective was in his cosy guest room, the sunlight filtering and creeping through the blinds. He had promised to stay until then, and didn't want to appear a burden or as if he was getting in the way of Kaede's personal life so he thought it was best if he went home. He had to eventually anyway. He had just brought his clean clothes upstairs from the dryer and was neatly folding them up, ready to pack them back into his black rucksack. He was going to miss Kaede's house; the girl and the property in itself had been very inviting and humble and made Shuichi not really want to return to his shabby flat - Kaede's home was grand and impressive like a palace, though much, much smaller in comparison. He finished squashing his belongings into the bag and flopped down on the soft bed. He had spent six comfortable nights there: no doubt the best nights of sleep he'd ever experienced. He'd boasted about how relaxing the beds were to Kaede over breakfast the morning following his arrival and the pianist had appeared more than pleased with her best friend's reactions. Shuichi couldn't help but think that the girl had gone through the effort of finding an appropriate mattress for him in the hope that it'd help him cheer up and calm down - even if that weren't the case, it definitely worked! Shuichi was extremely grateful for all Kaede had done for him that week and he owed her big time, even though he knew if he said anything she'd insist that it was all in the name of kindness and she didn't want anything in return. He'd keep that small detail to himself for now. He stared at the ceiling, a small smile of gratitude forming on his face.

"Shuichi? Lunch is ready! Come downstairs!" A friendly voice called from the kitchen.

The detective stood up, picking his bag up and throwing it over his shoulder casually. "Coming!" He walked towards the door and opened it, freezing in the doorway. He turned back to face the room. He was going to miss it, but he knew he'd maybe be able to stay over at his friend's again, so it wasn't goodbye forever. Growing hungrier, he hurriedly left the room and closed the door behind him, heading down the stairs to the kitchen.

Kaede was dishing up bitesized balls of seafood and vegetables into small glass bowls when her friend had walked in. "Sorry if this isn't too impressive - I haven't gone shopping yet this week and I usually buy just for one person since I live alone, but I do really hope this is good enough for you!" She beamed hopefully, eager to receive a positive reaction from the detective. She ushered him to a seat as he placed his bag down underneath the large mahogany table, polished so thoroughly it was gleaming as if it were smiling.

"There's no need to apologise! I really don't mind - you had good intentions and that's all that matters, right? I like sushi. It's one of my favourite foods, you have nothing to worry about." Shuichi replied thoughtfully, pulling his bowl closer to him and inspecting the contents with a ravenous grin. He tucked his wooden chair underneath the table as Kaede slid a fork across the table to him.

"We don't need chopsticks. You're more than welcome to eat with your fingers too, no one's here to judge you." The blonde girl winked with a giggle, unable to admit that she didn't own any so she masked the truth with a joke. She sat opposite the boy at the other side of the square table and began to eat.

The kitchen was exceptionally clean; the table was spotless, the counter tops were immaculately pristine and sanitary as well as the floor being unsullied. It was a large rectangular room, the black fridge beside the door, so tall it towered over both friends, looming eerily above them. It had a built in freezer below it, much smaller than the fridge. A whiteboard was attached to the front with a to-do list scribbled onto it. Souvenir magnets were scattered across the face of the refrigerator, populating it as if the fridge were their happy home. On the right of the fridge were a trio of counters against the wall with cider ceramic cupboards (holding pots and pans, along with cleaning equipment), and oak worktops. The middle had a sink instead of a worktop, the silver glimmering in the sunlight shining from the window behind it, open a crack to let the air in. The counter on the right was in the corner of the room, along with another three counters and cupboards on the right of it, all of the worktops making an L-shape across the edge of the kitchen. The polished porcelain tiled floor was a smooth, dull orange, unlike the walls which were a cream like the rest of the house, following the same beautiful colour scheme.

Shuichi followed the girl and began to eat. "Kaede this is really good!" Though he knew not to speak with his mouth full, this was an exception in his books.

The pianist smiled fondly, a faint rose dusting her cheeks. "Thanks! I was hoping you'd like it." She looked increasingly happy and it made Shuichi's heart warm. She really was something special.

"Ah, Kaede." He put down his fork in his bowl for a second and looked up across the table at the blonde, "Thank you for this week. I really appreciate it, and everything you've done for me." He flashed her a kind smile and resumed eating.

The girl's face lit up immediately. "No really, it was nothing. I just wanted to help you out! You don't need to thank me!" There was a certain affectionate aspect of Kaede's smile which gave the detective a stronger resolve, allowing him to smile brightly too.

"After this I'm going to need to go home. Kaito's been taking care of the apartment by himself and I think he's probably sick of all the gloomy colours in that cramped place by now." The boy gestured to the door with his fork, laughing a little bit as he imagined Kaito in that situation.

"That's okay! It's been great having you around! You're welcome to come back any time you'd like. It's nice living with somebody, you know?" Her voice decreased in volume as she spoke her final line but Shuichi was able to hear every word as he finished his meal, popping the fish into his mouth.

"Y-Yeah. I agree. It _has_ been nice not living alone. Quite a change considering I never really had my parents around and my uncle used to come home very late because of his detective work. How about I stay over perhaps a weekend every two months?" Shuichi offered, washing his bowl and fork in the sink.

"I'd really like that, thank you." She stood up, having finished her meal too. "Ah, Shuichi... You don't have to do that - I'll do it. You just focus on getting home okay?" She took Shuichi's place at the sink and began to wash the glass bowls.

"Hey, which bus stop do I take to get home?" He picked up his bag and stood beside the kitchen door, ready to leave.

"When you leave the house, turn right. There should be a bus stop on this side of the road if you walk along a bit. You know which stop you're getting off at right?" She turned her head to face him.

"Yes. Thank you, goodbye! I'll talk to you later!" The detective left with a wave and a huge grin on his face. He walked down the street feeling completely relaxed, his magnificent mood unmovable, and waited for bus at the nearest bus stop. When it arrived he hopped on happily and sat at the very back, where no one could disturb him.

His week had been amazing. Kaede had played him probably a hundred songs and a few of her own that she was working on, as well as taught him to play with her. The duo had been playing Clair De Lune together and it made Shuichi feel at one with the world knowing that he was contributing to making that peaceful sound with his fingertips on the keys. They'd baked together and made cakes, which they'd scoffed together immediately after resulting in frequent tummy aches but that was all part of the fun, they had decided. Sunbathing in Kaede's garden was also good fun - it was huge and no matter what time of day it was, there was always sunlight blazing down on the green grass. The pianist clearly took good care of her house and the garden too, making it look as presentable as possible, much like herself. They watched movies, went out to restaurants and fast food places, Kaede even took him bowling. The week must have costed her a fortune and Shuichi wanted to pay her back all the money she'd wasted on a boy like him, though he was grateful for all the effort she put in for him. The bus approached his stop, snapping the detective out of his contented reminiscence. He climbed off of the bus and began walking home, only a relatively short distance away from the stop, like Kaede.

He pressed his keycard against the reader and the door unlocked itself, allowing the dark haired boy to enter. Upon entry, another figure besides himself was making itself at home sweeping up. Their eyes met and the other person in the room smiled brightly at Shuichi, leaning the broom against the wall and waving enthusiastically.

"Welcome home, sidekick!" The purple haired boy chirped, walking towards his friend.

"Hey, Kaito! It's good to see you! The apartment looks really clean... Thank you for coming over and taking care of the place for me." Shuichi scratched the back of his neck nervously.

'It's no problem! Anything for my buddy!" He flashed his signature wide grin. "Oh yeah - I found something really important whilst cleaning! You need to come look!" He grabbed Shuichi by the wrist and led him into his bedroom towards his desk, finally freeing him from his grasp when their eyes were laid on a small black card painted with familiar patterns.

"K-Kaito? Is that a calling card? H-How? Where did you find this?" Shuichi was sightly panicking. How did the calling card get into his apartment when he was sure he didn't have the next one?

"It was poking out from under the door mat. I saw it when I was sweeping earlier and picked it up. Decided to not throw it away - thought it would be helpful to you even though I'm not quite sure what it's supposed to mean." He stepped back from the table allowing his friend to get closer.

Shuichi put his bag down next to the desk and noticed his desk had also been tidied up. There were neat, organised piles of paper rather than sheets scattered across the surface of the wood. "You tidied up too, huh? Thanks. That was really helpful." He turned the card over the inspect the clue. The taunting message read:

' _Even thieves of the night like to have their fun,_  
_Like at fancy parties - you can dance 'til your legs are done._  
_FlashWayz three days; don't forget to count the hours_  
_Or you can say goodbye to the memories of the flowers.'_

"W-What? This is even more absurd than the previous one." Shuichi's face displayed a look of true puzzled horror.

"But at least you know that the crime is involving a party, right?" Kaito pointed at the second line of the hint.

"It only makes sense if a party were involved considering the thief enjoys people solving his clues. He wouldn't say anything irrelevant to his crime... But what party is he referencing?" The detective gasped sharply and his face suddenly lit up with shock.

"Shuichi? What's the matter?" Kaito leaned over his friend's shoulder trying to see what the problem was.

"How long have I had the card? What if the crime is happening tonight and I have no idea where it is? Or what if its already happened? I'm not gonna be able to prevent the theft and I'm going to be deemed the worst detective of the century!" The shorter boy began to panic about all of the possibilities.

"You're acting really out of character. It isn't like you to panic over stuff like this... You could only have had it since last week after the museum heist right? Six days ago. Plus if the heist had already happened then it'd be all over the news. You have nothing to worry about!" Kaito enthusiastically cheered. Shuichi knew it wasn't as easy as he made it look to not worry about such things, but to avoid an argument he decided not to say anything. "Hey, sidekick. Maybe you could call Kaede and ask her about any fancy parties coming up? She has quite a few popular friends in the music industry, doesn't she? Maybe she or one of them were invited, considering they're technically celebrities." Kaito really was helpful, Shuichi noted.

"You're right! Kaede did mention a piano recital but I don't think that she meant a fancy party, though I might as well check up on it anyway, just in case." Shuichi fished his phone out from his pocket. He dialed her number and she quickly picked up.

"Shuichi? Did you get home safe?" She sounded worried, the tone of her warm voice altered by the phone.  
"Yeah I'm fine, don't worry. I needed to ask you something." The boy assured his friend that nothing was the matter and a relaxed sigh met his ear.  
"That's good. Okay! Fire away!"  
"Well," He started, "have you, by any chance, been invited to any fancy parties scheduled for the next couple of weeks?"  
"Nope. Even if I _had_ I wouldn't be able to attend. I've got piano pieces to be perfecting."  
The detective's face fell. "Oh. Okay, thank you anyway."  
"Wait! Before you hang up, I could try contacting Sayaka Maizono and Ibuki Mioda! I'm sure one of them must have been invited, they're both very talented." Kaede didn't want to appear as a waste of time and wanted to help her best friend with whatever she could.  
"Really? That would be great. Thank you so much, Kaede! Please hurry though, we don't know how much time we have left."  
"Okay! Got it!" She hung up, determination in her voice.

"So?" Kaito spun his finger around in small circles expectantly.

"She said he hadn't been invited to any parties but she'd check with her friends because she's sure at least one of them would've been invited. Hopefully this gives us a solid lead." Shuichi pulled his hat down over his eyes slightly, a hand only just covering his mouth, deep in thought.

"What now?" Kaito asked, picking up the card from the desk and inspecting it himself.

"That's what I was thinking, but as there's nothing else we can do right now considering we have nowhere to start until we hear from Kaede, I was thinking maybe I should talk things out with Kyoko. Could you call her for me? Tell her we found the next card and to meet me at the agency. You can go home too, thanks again for taking care of the place." Shuichi carefully took the card from Kaito's hands, cautious not to rip it otherwise it would be useless.

Kaito perked up energetically. "Yeah! If it helps with the case I'll do anything!" He took his phone from his pocket with a reliable wink and proceeded to dial Kyoko's number.

"Thank you!" Shuichi shouted as he ran for the door, slipping the card securely into the safety of his pocket. Kyoko wouldn't take more than five minutes to reach the office meaning he had to hurry. He sped down the streets, much like he had done a week prior when he had received the case of capturing and identifying the phantom thief and, eyes steeling with determination, ran faster than before.

When he reached the office he was sweaty and tired. He opened the door and peered in, looking for his partner in the dark room. Stepping inside he spotted her immediately, sitting quietly on a comfy arm chair, appearing to be in a distracted daze of a daydream, in the middle of two strangers who appeared to be clients waiting for a detective to speak to. When Kyoko noticed the boy's presence she looked up and snapped back to reality.

"Hello, Shuichi. I've told your uncle about the card already, you don't need to worry about that. We can't discuss the case here, all the rooms are occupied at the moment." She was straight to the point, as usual, and didn't waste a second of time.

"Should we go to the cafe then? It's usually pretty quiet since people go there to do work, so we should be undisturbed." Shuichi suggested, really just wanting to have a refreshing hot drink to calm his nerves.

"I don't have a problem with that. Tell me about the card on the way. I'll look at it myself when we get there." Kyoko got up and started walking towards the door, Shuichi quickly following behind her like an obedient dog.

The cafe was a short distance away. Shuichi often spent many afternoons there with Kaito and Maki, occasionally Kaede joined them there too. It was one of Shuichi's favourite locations, besides the library. He preferred calm, quiet places over busy, lively ones so the cafe was a perfect place for him. No one would talk to you or talk too loudly and left you undisturbed. The food and drinks served there were deliciously mouthwatering and the detective, having an incredible sweet tooth, avoided admitting that he spent more money there monthly than he'd spent on food shopping every week. On the way there Shuichi explained how he had spent the week away and when he had returned Kaito had found the calling card. He spoke about how he called Kaede regarding a fancy party referenced in the hint and how he was now anticipating a call back to give him a lead to the next heist.

"I haven't heard of any parties... Perhaps it's a private party? Invite only?" Kyoko pondered the thought as they entered the cafe, the warm welcoming odour of cakes and coffee enveloping them in its mellow arms.

Round tables dotted the room, each accompanied by a set of five light brown chairs, the leather seats alternating between a colourful teal and green. They matched perfectly with the dusty purple wall and aegean blue carpet. Lamps clung to the walls elegantly above some tables, there were round lights in the ceiling too. The lights in the ceiling in front of the bar counter were different; they shone a variety of colours changing from one to another softly like a delicate spotlight. There were some people on a few of the tables - there was never a time when the pleasant place was empty. Some were enjoying drinks and cakes with their friends whilst others did work, none being particularly loud or troublemaking to Shuichi's relief.

"Yes, that's what I thought too. No one knows when the party will be either because of this, so preventing the next theft will be extremely difficult." Shuichi responded, approaching a table close to the wall nearest the counter selling the sugary treats. The two began to discuss the possibilities of the whereabouts of the crime quietly, unaware that they were being watched.

The tall man slicked back his brown hair with his hand as he gazed at the detective from behind the counter. "So _this_ is the Shuichi Saihara I've been hearing about? Interesting..." He muttered to himself, finally seeing the boy in the flesh for the first time. He'd have thought that spying on the detective would have been much more difficult hence he imagined the dark haired boy would be a little more cautious and perceptive, however Shuichi was so deep in conversation he didn't even recognise that he was being stared at. Ego, in his compulsory dark green apron, white shirt, smart black trousers and polished shoes, decided to stay where he was standing for a little longer before approaching the pair of investigators - he wanted to observe him for a little longer. He'd seen the boy there many times before, and thought of him as a relatively nice man but he'd never have thought that the shy boy who'd stop by the cafe every week for cakes and coffees would be his target. However, this only made the scenario much more intriguing. He decided to, at last, make a move and paced towards the two, his head held high as usual.

"Hello. Would you two like a drink? We have tea, all sorts of coffee - mocha, latte - you name it! Oh and water or perhaps juice if you'd like, of course." Ego beamed at them warmly, looking friendly as ever.

The detectives paused their conversation momentarily and looked up at the man who had his hands behind his back and a wide grin on his face. "I'd like just a regular coffee please. Just a little bit of sugar." Shuichi smiled back, he'd often small talk with the man about the news or the weather occasionally when he was at the cafe by himself so he was very comfortable around him. A foolish decision.

"Tea with no sugar please." Kyoko wasn't all that thirsty - she just didn't want to appear rude or show her fellow detective up.

The staff member scribbled down their orders on a post-it note and smiled back up at them. "Did you know you guys were our... Uh... 50th customers today? That means you both get a slice of cake on the house! I know, I'm so amazing! I talked about the idea with my manager and he agreed with it. It always makes me so happy seeing cheerful faces eating cake! What can I get you?" He lied, aiming to study the male more. Not only did he want to study the boy, but the calling card he'd placed on the table between the two, too. He peered at it in the corner of his eye discreetly. _So he does have it, huh?_

Shuichi's face lit up at the mentioning of free cake, his eyes sparking like glimmering topazes above his excited smile. "I'd love a slice of Victoria sponge cake! It's my _favourite_! The cream is _amazing_! What do you want Kyoko?"

She stared at her gloves, not really interested in the conversation. She didn't trust the man - something seemed off about him. "Nothing, thank you. I ate not too long ago."

Ego nodded understandingly. "That's not a problem at all, miss. I'll be back shortly with your drinks and cake." And with that, the staff member sauntered back being the counter, switching the kettle on before dashing into the back room. The back room was a small room used as a staff room mostly, the walls and floor matching the rest of the cafe. Lockers for all the staffs' belongings were lined against the wall. A long table surrounded by comfortable looking chairs stood proudly in the middle of the room. There was a door to the right of the room, leading to a kitchen where the cakes and food were prepared for sale. Ego never used that room. He couldn't cook if his life depended on it. He just attracted customers with his dashingly good looks and charisma; girls would appear for consecutive days just to see Ego. The brunet male removed his phone from his locker and began dialing his boss.

"Hello? Boss? It's Ego. I have important news to report."  
"I'm making preparations for the next heist with Shade. What's the problem?" The boss was clearly in a bad mood, impatiently waiting for the night of the heist to approach. The air was thick with tension. The next theft was crucial to the success of the project and no one had room for failure.   
"You sound quite miserable. Would it cheer you up if I said I had the detective you like so much with me?" Ego sneered teasingly.  
"You what? Did you kidnap him? That's cool if you did because he won't get in the way of the mission but-" He was cut off.  
"No, I wouldn't stoop that low unless I was ordered to. _I_ have standards, unlike _some people_. He's in the cafe waiting for me to bring him coffee and cake. He seems like quite the boring character, however."  
"Perhaps, but he gave me the night of my life! Nee-heehee! You'd better treat him nicely for me, otherwise I'll shave all your hair off and you'll be UGLY!" The thief threatened with a loud childish laugh.  
"My job was to watch him, not rough him up. I just wanted to report my first encounter with him, dull thing he is. Anyway, I've got to go. They'll begin to get suspicious if I don't supply them with what I promised them. Goodbye." Ego hung up without waiting for a reply from his boss. It was a waste of time talking to him for the most part.

He returned his phone to the locker and left the room, turning off the kettle in the process. He prepared the desired beverages as well as the cake and glided back over to the table where the detectives were still deep in conversation. "Sorry for the wait. I had to take a call - very important, you understand."

Shuichi smiled as he took the plate and coffee from the brunet. "Don't worry about it, it happens. Thank you so much! How much will this cost?" He began fishing money from his pockets as Kyoko sipped her tea, nonchalant as the liquid scorched her lips fiercely.

"Just this once I'll let you off. Don't worry about paying and enjoy yourselves! Aren't I magnificent? I'm so kind. Anyway, I'll leave you two be. Have a good day!" He held his hand up in a half wave as he walked away, presumably to observe the detective from behind the tall counter again.

"Th-Thank you! You too!" Shuichi called as he walked away. He smiled to himself, having a good day so far. Swallowing another mouthful of his coffee, he peered back at the calling card. He and Kyoko had been discussing the party and theorising the possibilities of what the thief could be planning. "Kyoko, what do you think the hint means? You're giving the card an intense look; something is definitely on your mind."

She met Shuichi's eyes coldly. "I was just thinking about how poorly written the card is." She proceeded to drink her tea.

"Poorly written? Please explain what you mean, I don't quite understand..." The male replied with a quiet sheepish laugh.

"The plans for the next heist are distinctly obvious. You're not thinking clearly enough, Shuichi." The female looked like a teacher tutoring a young student, step by step to solve a simple equation.

"Obvious? Seems pretty ominous to me. Like the last hint, it doesn't make any sense without context." He focused even harder on the card as if he were expecting it to confess its sins.

Kyoko sighed impatiently. She was always fast to make deductions which were correct for the most part, so she knew that other people, or in this case Shuichi, would be quite slow compared to her. "Something we both know about this thief is that he loves attention, so of course he'd carry out a theft at a busy place where the public would be able to watch as he committed the crime, helpless to him. This place, like in the card, will definitely be a fancy party."

Shuichi gasped, finally understanding what she was trying to convey. "Oh... So you mean the thief gave that away without trying to hide it because he wanted people to know about the party?"

"That's right, but that's not all. Look at how the clue is written." She pointed at the card.

"How it's written?" He inspected the clue again, mumbling the words to himself quietly as if he were trying to process everything. The circuits of his brain were clattering with thorough analysis. "The clue in itself looks rushed. It's pretty effortless too, although the thief still managed to hide _some things_ about the crime. Overall, it appears that the thief was in a hurry to complete the calling card before the last crime, so all the heists must have been planned out beforehand." He noted.

Kyoko's suppressed a smile, proud of Shuichi for his deductions, however she hadn't initially thought about how the heists were planned before they were all committed. She nodded at the other detective. "That is correct. It was exactly what I was thinking. But there is one thing you got wrong."

Shuichi's face fell. "W-Wrong? W-What do you mean?"

"The thief didn't hide anything at all. He was lazy this time, luckily. The thief has included both the location _and_ item he is planning to steal on the card." Finishing her tea, she stood up. "Re-read the 'three days' line. That should make everything clear." She turned to walk away. "Oh, and don't forget that the internet is your friend. Good luck, detective." Without another word or waiting for a response she swiftly left, her long light hair hanging elegantly behind her.

Shuichi didn't want to shout back to her asking what she meant as he didn't want to disrupt the peaceful environment in the cafe, and refused to upset other members of the public. He finished his cake and drink in silence, thinking about everything Kyoko had said. _So she's already figured it out, huh? That's Kyoko Kirigiri for you._ After he had swallowed his final bite of cake he stood up, taking the two cups and the plate which held the cake back to the counter before leaving. The internet is your friend. Shuichi would be seeing for himself when he returned home.

By the time he entered his apartment it was 5pm. The warm evening sun heated his apartment, enveloping the rooms in benevolent comfort. His place was empty indicating that Kaito had left a long time ago. His mind was still foggy with confusion. He walked into his bedroom approaching his bed, crouching down beside it and reaching underneath it. He pulled his laptop out from the back near the wall; he'd always hidden it, even from his friends, because of the content on it. He carried the black device carefully to his desk, placing it onto the centre of it and the calling card beside it. He picked up a pen and a pad of paper to write down the results of his research and finally sat down on his stool. Signing into his laptop he sighed. The day was almost over and the most he had succeeded in discovering is the heist was held at a party taking place god knows when. He opened his browser - bing - and typed 'private party 26th July' into the search bar only to gather that his search had been fruitless. He tried again, rephrasing and adding different keywords here and there but still found nothing. In all honesty, Shuichi didn't really know much about the internet. He didn't use it much - he preferred learning things via books at the library rather than using his laptop. If he urgently needed to find something out, he'd use his phone though this was rare. The detective then remembered what Kyoko had instructed him to do - focus on the 'three days' line. He read the calling card again: ' _FlashWayz three days; don't forget to count the hours_ '.

"Count the hours?" He murmured to himself. It was just as Kyoko had said: the clue was entirely obvious, you just had to read it carefully. "Three days is... 72 hours... It couldn't mean that the heist would happen 72 hours after the last one though, it would have been all over the news, which _means it's irrelevant to that aspect of the crime_." He jotted his findings on his paper in an organised mind map, a grin spreading across his face out of satisfaction - he was making progress. Shuichi was a remarkable detective when he was fully focused. He was incredible at piecing information together which was what made him so talented at tracking down runaways and lost pets, even that murder case he solved once included these skills he displayed. "If the number is irrelevant to the date of the crime then it would have something to do with what was said before, otherwise the whole line wouldn't make sense... So... FlashWayz72?" He scribbled the strange phrase down and laughed to himself. "Sounds like a dumb username..." And then his realisation hit him harder than puberty. He immediately began typing, what he assumed to be a username, into his search bar, gasping at the relevant results to his investigation.

As the detective, stunned that he'd worked part of the clue out, scrolled through the search results he noted that all of them had to do with a camera. He scrolled back to the top and clicked on the first result. It was a news story by _The Weekly Post_ and featured an interview with famous photographer Mahiru Koizumi. He read their exchanges, noting the things she and the interviewer said.

 _Weekly Post:_ We hear you had a special camera custom made for you? Would you be able to tell us about it?

 _Mahiru Koizumi:_ I wouldn't mind at all! I had several cameras before this one - the FlashWayz72 - but they all had this one feature that I despised so I asked for a camera to be made to suit me and my tastes.

 _Weekly Post:_ What sort of features does your camera possess?

 _Mahiru Koizumi:_ First of all, there is no 'delete' option, meaning no photos can be erased. I never erase a photo once I take it; that's my number one policy! No matter what kind of photo it is, the moment captured in it only exists at that time. In addition, no one but me can use this camera. To activate it you need my fingerprints. You also need it to take photos. This is helpful as no one can take photos and stealing my camera would be pointless.

The interview carried on for a while after this however the detective just skimmed through it, already knowing what he needed. The FlashWayz72 was a custom made camera designed for famous photographer Mahiru Koizumi. The phantom thief was going to steal the camera from a fancy party, presumably Mahiru's party. Where this party was being held or when it would take place was still a mystery however. Shuichi looked at the time in the bottom right corner of his screen: _**19:48.**_ He still had some time to research the photographer before sleeping. He could benefit from some extra details to work from, after all. He typed her name into the search bar and endless websites dedicated to her stunning photographs and biographies presented themselves to the detective. There was also a documentary about her and her work, which Shuichi decided would be beneficial to watch. He hadn't eaten dinner yet so he rushed into the kitchen, remembering that as he was out all week he hadn't gone shopping, forcing him to settle for toast. He reappeared in his bedroom, sitting back at his desk comfortably and watched the documentary. By the time it was finished at 22:34, as it was displayed on the screen, Shuichi had learned a moderate amount about the photographer. She was a kind and optimistic woman who was extremely sensible and very passionate about photography. In addition, he noted how she had mentioned about liking to travel - she seemed the type, too. She presented herself in a way which made her appear confident, however upon further analysis it was apparent that she suffered from some self-esteem issues. She was also very beautiful, Shuichi thought. He adored the freckles dusted across her cheeks on her pale, porcelain face and her olive green orbs which seemed to sparkle as she talked about her passion. They reminded him of Kaede; the same shimmering happened when she spoke about her music. It made him smile. Mahiru was also quite slender, with short red hair in a bob cut. With all this information in his head, he decided to sleep. He didn't bother changing - he had clean clothes in his rucksack by the door of his apartment anyway - and climbed into bed with a sigh. He was disappointed that he couldn't learn more about the crime, but still, he had learned a lot for someone who rarely had to decipher the meanings behind calling cards left at crime scenes by phantom thieves. Whilst that was oddly specific, it still was true. Shuichi had been trying his hardest to capture the phantom thief and, hot on his trail, he wasn't going to give up.

Shuichi was abruptly awoken from his slumber by the irritating tune of 'I'm Too Sexy' blaring from his phone, drilling into his skull. _He had to change that damn ringtone!_ He shot up in bed, wide eyed with a face displaying pure distress. He stumbled out and away from the comfort and warmth of his bed and darted towards the device on his desk, desperate to put an end to its husky screaming. He wasn't too surprised when it was revealed that it was Kaede who was calling him, especially at six in the morning - she was known to be quite the early bird. Almost reluctantly he answered the phone, yawning loudly and rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"Morning Kaede... You're up early..." Shuichi yawned again mid-sentence, hoping he didn't come off as rude.  
"Good morning! Nice day isn't it? You sound like you've just woken up." She was very energetic for a Sunday morning. Shuichi wondered where she got the motivation from, he really needed some of whatever she was on.  
"No, no, I've been up for ages. What possessed you to call me at this hour, Kaede." Shuichi attempted to make his remark sound somewhat sarcastic, though his words were cloaked by a sleepy haze making it near impossible to recognise the true effect he was aiming for.  
"So, my close friend Sayaka Maizono called me back and said that she had been invited to a private party by her friend, Mahiru Koizumi. She's a famous photographer who's throwing a huge party tonight and apparently she's selling her photographs." Kaede sounded excited as she spoke about the girls. She liked having all this information, it made her feel important.  
"Yes! Thank you, Kaede! This is the party that we've been needing to know about!" Shuichi was fully awake now. He combed his hair back with his slender fingers as he let out a happy sigh of relief. _He had a solid lead!_ He picked up his pen and went to jot on a fresh piece of paper. "Kaede, do you know where the party is being held? And the time too?"  
"No... She said it was a private party so she didn't tell me much. I could ask Sayaka to meet with you and you could go as her plus one, if you'd like? She hasn't got anyone to go with and I could convince her to let you go."  
Shuichi pondered this for a moment. He thought it would be mean to use the famous pop idol like this, but it _was_ for the sake of the case..."Okay. I'll do it." He gathered all of his courage and answered, trying to force the pang of guilt out of his chest.  
"Great! I'll call Sayaka and I'll text you the plans afterwards. See ya!"  
"O-Okay, goodbye Kaede." He hung up, unsure of the plan. He had heard Sayaka sing before, she was amazing. He never liked to admit to it, but he used to be a huge fan of the singer's and the thought of using her for a case made his stomach twist uncomfortably like a contortionist.

He looked at the time: _**06:54.**_ It was basically already 7 am so there was no point in going back to sleep. Anyway, he doesn't have the time to waste sleeping: tonight was the night he would see the phantom thief again. He decided to take a shower to kill some time waiting for the text. Grabbing a towel from his wardrobe, he walked out of the room into the bathroom. By the time he left the bathroom, dressed and dried (excluding his damp hair), the clock had struck 7:38am. He sauntered towards his desk where he had left his phone on charge, like he did every night, and checked the notifications. Kaede had sent him a text message whilst he was in the shower. He unlocked his phone and immediately read the message.

**Kaede Akamatsu**

>Hey!!! Sayaka says she'll be happy to meet you!!!!!!! Meet her at the park @ 12 today _7:15_

>Oh and remember to be polite!!!! _7:16_

He quickly typed a reply, relieved that Sayaka actually agreed to go along with their plan. Some of his anxiety expelled from the tight feeling in his chest.

>Thanks for everything, Kaede. I really owe you. _7:40_

He had around four hours until he had to leave so he settled for watching TV. He strolled into his living room and threw himself onto his dark sofa, picking up the TV remote. He flicked through the channels trying to find his favourite murder mystery show - Danganronpa. It was a killing game where 16 ordinary people were trapped in a building with no way out - the only way to leave was to get away with murder in a group trial. Shuichi knew that there was no way what happened in the show was reality and it all was staged; some of the murders and characters were just bizarre. He enjoyed solving the murders by himself, sometimes he was even confident that he would survive the killing game however he never wanted to be put in such an awful situation. He was glad it was fake for that reason. The third group trial had just happened during the previous episode. As he suspected, his favourite character had been murdered by his second favourite. Only eight people remained; the first two murders were double murders, killing three people each time. This season would no doubt be one of the shortest, but Shuichi would definitely agree that it had been the most thrilling and interesting by far. The episodes were moderately long and he caught the beginning of episode seven just as it was recapping the events of the previous episode. He shifted in his seat, trying to get comfortable. After all, he'd be there for a while.

When the episode finished Shuichi checked the time on his phone: _**11:04.**_ It was almost time. Before he left he decided to recap his notes on the case so far. The target of the crime was Mahiru Koizumi, a famous photographer who was in possession of the item the phantom thief wished to steal at a party - a custom made camera called the FlashWayz72. The party was tonight however, for the time being, the location and time of the party were unknown. He would need to see Sayaka to learn that. It was about a 30 minute walk to the park. If Shuichi wanted to make a good first impression on his former idol he'd better not be late. Who knows? Perhaps she would have the same idea as him. Information about the crime fresh in his mind and a goal he was driven to accomplish, Shuichi placed his black hat on his head neatly and left his apartment headed for the park.

He was going to stop this crime. He was going to capture the thief! Albeit, nothing would prepare him for his encounter with the thief that night...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologise for my lack of ability to write but please believe me when I say it'll get better. In the next half of this chapter the thief shows up and the plot begins to thicken from there. I hope you do enjoy reading this rubbish lmao


	5. Return Of The Phantom (2/2)

The noon sun was blazing mercilessly like a devious overlord, transforming the world into a brilliant, yet steamless, sauna. The courageous detective strolled down the street towards the park to meet Sayaka Maizono, passing shop upon shop on the way. The vast array of colours ranging from red to blue to black to white whizzed past as Shuichi walked by the busy buildings, a spring in his step as he quickened his pace. Slender trees in tall black cages decorated the path he walked on, pulchritudinous purple flowers snaking up the thin trunks like dainty ornaments. He aimed to arrive at his destination earlier than the assigned time, to make a good first impression of himself to the singer who he had admired a lot in his past years. However, beneath his mask of bravery, he was frightened. His walk slowly turned into a light jog as he headed towards the park faster than before. The dark haired boy couldn't waste any time - the quicker he met up with Sayaka, the quicker he could attempt to prevent the crime and catch the thief. The plan seemed simple enough, he just had to convince her to work with him.

Shuichi approached the open black gates of the park. The leafy plants coiled around the hot metal protectively, thorns not allowing anyone to touch it. He continued down the cracked path of the green area, slowing to a speedy walk as he searched for the singer. The park was huge and continued far over the horizon. Tall trees were scattered throughout the area, swaying in the light summer breeze. Birds and squirrels played in them, scurrying from tree to tree quickly. As the detective walked towards the center of the park he laid eyes on a stunning fountain surrounded by worn wooden benches. Several had golden plaques on the back of them, deeming them important. It almost felt an honour to be sitting on them. The golden eyed boy scrutinised the scene carefully until the long dark hair of his former idol caught his attention. He breathed in the fresh air, trying to calm his nerves before sauntering towards her, a forced yet friendly smile on his face.

"H-Hello? You're Sayaka Maizono right?" He stopped in front of the girl taking in all her perfect features. He'd forgotten how dazzling her appearance was, from her indigo blue eyes to her pale, slim face donning a faint pink tint of blush on both cheeks and her tailbone length hair, the fringe held back by tiny silver clips. She wore a long sleeved white shirt featuring a blue sailor collar, a large pink tailed ribbon bow on her chest. The dark blue tartan skirt hanging from her hips barely reached her black thigh-high socks, let alone her knees. Her shoes were brown and buckled, her feet pointed inwards and her knees touching as she sat on the bench. Her hands were on her lap neatly and looked distant as if she were daydreaming.

Upon hearing her name, the girl snapped out of her haze and looked up suddenly. "Yes, that's me. You're Shuichi Saihara I presume? Kaede talks about you a lot. I've heard so much about you! It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" She smiled cheerfully at the detective and patted the space on the bench beside her, calling the boy to sit down. He quickly obliged to her wishes and sat with her a few inches away, careful to stay out of her personal space.

"She... Talks about me? To you?" Shuichi was genuinely surprised. A famous celebrity really knew about him before they'd met. Kaede really was a goddess. He'd never taken Kaede for granted before, but he certainly wouldn't now; the girl was amazing.

"Yup! You seem like really great friends! It makes me jealous, you know. My boyfriend works for the Future Foundation and he doesn't really talk about me much to them at all. Not that it matters - he's still the same old Makoto Naegi." She was rambling to herself, more than anyone else really. She looked down at her lap again shyly as if she had embarrassed herself. "Ah, sorry for talking nonsense."

Shuichi smiled in response. "Don't worry, it's fine. I really don't mind... But could you tell me about the party tonight? It's really important."

The girl's shy smile faded in an instant. A stoic expression flourished on her face as her head shot up to face him. "No!" Her voice was a harsh whisper as she darted her eyes around frantically.

Shuichi flinched slightly, but leaned in closer and lowered his voice to a whisper too, understanding that she was doing it for a reason, whatever on Earth it may be. "W-What? Why? Is there something wrong?"

"Yes! We can't talk about it here! People might be listening. It's a private party for a reason, not even the press are attending." She stood up, grabbing the boy by the wrists.

"H-Hey! What are you doing?" He felt himself being pulled up off of the bench. Sayaka was surprisingly strong for such a small, thin woman.

"Come with me!" She exclaimed, pulling him off of the path surrounding the fountain towards a nature trail, the overgrown grass and plants tangled amongst each other threateningly in an almost loving embrace.

"Uh... Okay?" The surprised detective allowed himself to be escorted towards the army of thick brambles.

Once they were hidden within the greenery the singer released a heavy sigh of relief. She grabbed Shuichi's shoulders with both hands. "Thank God we're alone now... I wanted to ask you to stay with me today."

The detective's face displayed pure turmoil as he carefully leaned backwards, cautiously removing his shoulders from the girl's grasp. "Oh uh... Sure. I was going to ask the same thing, actually."

"Is it because you need information about Mahiru's party?" Her soft, pale hands fell back down to her sides as she asked inquisitively.

He looked to the floor where twigs and plants had been trampled carelessly. "Yes. It's really important that I find out when and where the party is."

She edged closer towards the detective, cocking her head to the side by a fraction. "Kaede didn't really give me much detail about why you'd need to come with me to the party. She asked me if I had a plus one yet, and I said no. She then asked if you could be my plus one instead. If you tell me why you need the information I'll let you come with me and tell you everything you want to know." She smiled cheerfully, a friendly expression blossoming on her angelic face. "It's a fair trade, in my opinion."

Shuichi pondered this for a moment. Should he tell someone who he's not familiar with or a member of the authorities about the details of the case? It could get him into some trouble... However, on the contrary, it was a good trade: they would both learn what they wished. Plus, Shuichi _needed_ this information. He sighed through gritted teeth. "Fine. It's a deal. I'll tell you everything as long as you keep your side of the bargain." He held out his hand expectantly, and the girl shook it eagerly.

"Good!" She hopped back away from the detective, ready to listen.

Shuichi explained the whole phantom thief scenario to her - how he stole eccentric things for, seemingly, no reason and how he left calling cards at each crime scene as if all the robberies were a game. He explicated the case, telling Sayaka about the calling card found in his apartment and all the clues pointing towards the party. Shuichi's face fell as he informed her that her friend, Mahiru Koizumi, would be their next target and that if she didn't help him, Mahiru's prized possession would be stolen. He didn't want her to panic but he did what was necessary to gain the knowledge required to prevent the theft.

"What? I never knew that it would be this serious! We can't let him hurt Mahiru or take her camera!" Her eyes were wide with worry as tinges of guilt sprung in her chest, apologetic about being so stubborn before.

"That's why I need to know everything there is about the party. I want to capture and unmask the phantom thief, as well as protect Mahiru, and the only way I can do that is if I go to the party and stop him." He reasoned with the anxious girl, putting a hand gently on her shoulder to comfort her. "She needs you."

Sayaka stayed silent for a moment, taking everything she had just learnt in as she fiddled with her sleeves. "Alright... I'll tell you all I know. Mahiru is holding her party tonight in a huge building in the main hall around the outer city. The Pearlhall Manor. It's about an hours drive from here so it's not too far. The party starts at 7:30 pm and it ends at 10 pm. I'll take you to the party as my plus one, for Mahiru's sake. I can't let anyone hurt her." Her voice was overcome with strength and determination; you could feel it radiating off of her powerfully. She balled her fists tightly, her eyes narrowed fiercely.

"Thank you, Sayaka! I do think we should warn her before the party starts, though. I wanted to contact her before but I didn't have any connections with her." Shuichi beamed at her gratefully.

"Ah! Yes you're right! Stay here, I'll warn her." She held her hands up to signal that Shuichi was not to move as she backed away from him, eventually turning around and climbing away over the thorns and brambles. Shuichi figured that she wanted to take the phone call privately, and he had no problem with that. He stayed where he was, trying to make himself feel less awkward by looking at the tall grass surrounding him as it tapped his shoulders. He checked the time on his phone: _**16:23.**_ It wasn't long until the party was due to begin and the detective felt his heart pick up in a panic. He hoped Sayaka would hurry up with her warning, tapping his foot anxiously.

"Shuichi! Mahiru said to meet her at the venue to discuss the situation!" The singer was stumbling speedily through the plants as she tried to avoid snagging her legs or clothing on any of the thorns.

Shuichi looked in her direction, not wanting to appear spaced out or distracted. He adjusted his hat to cover his eyes. "Okay, let's go then. It's nearly time for the party." He turned from her, walking towards the exit of the nature trail.

"Wait!" She called, reaching her arm out towards the retreating detective. "About that... I um... Can't go..."

He turned back around. "Why not? Is there something the matter?"

"No! That's not it! It just takes me a long time to get ready... If I go there now I won't have enough time to go home, get dressed, do my makeup and hair, and then go all the way back to the party. I'd miss the majority of it. Sorry... You'll have to go by yourself." She looked at the ground apologetically, playing with her fingers.

"I see... It's alright. It doesn't bother me so you can go and get ready. I'll see you tonight." Shuichi waved at the singer who waved back half-happily as he exited the nature trail. He speedily walked to the gates of the park, his pace quickening with every passing minute as his heart pounded in his chest. Once he left the park he pulled his phone from his pocket and called a taxi to take him to his destination. Once it eventually arrived, he hopped into the back seat and stared out of the window in silence. There wasn't much traffic, luckily, as it was a Sunday evening. Rush hour would've been much worse if it were a Monday, perhaps. Soon enough he had arrived at his destination. It was just as Sayaka had said; the journey was about an hour from the park.

He paid the driver and exited the yellow car before it sped off into the distance. The Pearlhall Manor was ginormous with polished, sparkling windows spaced out in rows along the width of the building. There were at least three storeys, and what looked like a rooftop too, however Shuichi could only assume this from where he was standing below the towering property. The walls were a posh, mature white with not even a single blemish tarnishing them making them appear new and grand. Shuichi walked up to the wide, dark red-brown double doors and tapped the golden knocker against the wood a few times, then waited patiently for an answer. After a few seconds the door swung open and a girl with short, red hair peered out from behind the wooden barrier as if it were a shield protecting her from the world.

"You're the detective, right?" She cautiously asked, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

Shuichi pulled a sheepish expression. "Uh y-yes. My name is Shuichi Saihara." He held out his hand for her to shake.

Reluctantly she opened the door fully and stepped out from behind it, revealing her slim form. She hesitantly took his hand and shook it before pulling her hand back. "Mahiru Koizumi. Come in, please." She backed away from the door, allowing the dark haired boy to enter, to which he did. She donned a fern green dress - low cut with straps over the shoulders and the skirt pleated - on top of a white short sleeved shirt. A plaid white and orange tie was secured around her neck, along with her camera hanging elegantly from an orange leather strap, resting on her chest. Forest green knee high socks cuddled her slim legs and on her feet were ebony green trainers with silver laces, tied up neatly.

Shuichi walked into the large manor, drinking in the extravagant sights. Upon entry he noted that everything was ultimately white. From the stairs right in front of the door, to the walls and floor which stretched far off down the long corridor, all of the interior was a dazzling crystal white - it was almost blinding. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling every few feet away from each other, making it evident that this estate was definitely rich. Down the hall were several doorways. They were probably just more blindingly monotonous rooms full of costly items that Shuichi could only dream of possessing.

"Detective? Please allow me to show you the main hall where the party is being held. We can secure the room from inside there." She closed the door behind the boy who was awestruck by the shimmering setting surrounding him. She began pacing down the corridor, expecting the boy to hurry up behind her.

"Ah right, okay." He ran slightly to catch up with her, hoping that he wouldn't get lost in such a large establishment. "But first - can you please check that all windows and doors that are not in use are locked? We can't risk letting the thief in."

"You're right. Well, that's only expected from a boy such as yourself anyway." She mumbled her last sentence to herself, aware that Shuichi had heard her. The pair came to a halt outside of a door much larger than the others. It was tall and wide with a golden plaque bolted into it reading ' _Main Hall_ '. She opened the door revealing an astronomically large room with laminated oak flooring and baby blue walls. Large windows and lights alternated upon the light blue plaster in a fancy lighting design. There were several tall, muscly men inside setting up. Some were piecing together and carrying long tables in pairs, arranging them neatly in ordered rows. Others were sorting out the lighting on the stage and making sure the spotlight worked as another danced humorously underneath the beam of light, however he stopped immediately as Mahiru opened the door. Another man was significantly shorter than the others, not to mention a little on the chubby side. He was organising exquisite foods on a long table at the back of the hall, positioning everything a certain way to look more appealing. Shuichi assumed he was a chef, judging from the way he was dressed. "This is the hall we will be in tonight. I believe that this is the only place that needs protection since I don't plan on leaving the room at any given time. That means the camera is staying here too." She beamed proudly, thinking she had discovered a way to defend herself from the devious phantom.

"Still, he could come in here and take it from you. He's very fast and sneaky - trust me, I know from experience. He'll stop at nothing to get what he wants." Shuichi warned, concerned about her recklessness.

She laughed mockingly. "Shuichi, if I see any suspicious individual I'll take a picture with my camera here." She picked up the device and held it up in front of her, imitating taking a photograph. "I plan on taking pictures of people here tonight anyway, so it won't look like I'm up to no good. I love seeing smiles on people's faces and I want to have the memories of their happy faces forever. The pictures will be presented on my photography website." She spoke with confidence as if she knew what she was doing.

The detective was unsure of Mahiru's decision to not call for any type of security, but he couldn't force her to do anything she didn't want to. Unable to do anything about the situation, he reluctantly left it alone and decided to move onto something different. "Would I be able to investigate the rest of the building?"

"Sure, just don't break or steal anything. I'll know. I'm watching you." She signalled with her fingers that her eyes were on him as she entered the room to finish preparing for the party.

With nothing else to talk about, Shuichi decided to look around the building starting with the ground floor. He had cognised that there were a significant amount of rooms besides the main hall, containing lustrous, pricey items. Underneath the stairs was a doorway which was less attractive than all the others. It was slightly smaller and thinner and a laminated sign reading 'Storage Room' was pinned to the front of it. A set of black keys hanging from a small rusty ring stuck out of the keyhole. Shuichi opened the door cautiously and an avalanche of dust powdered his pale face making him sneeze and sniffle in a choking catastrophe. Brushing the dust from his face he peered inside. The room clearly hadn't been used for a long while; not only was the room in filthy condition, but the room was almost empty, a few dusty boxes here and there. Cobwebs accessorised the corners of the rooms, clinging to the musty brick walls. Shuichi refused to have to hide in here - he was sure he might have to run to safety for a second time and being trapped inside such a small, cramped room cluttered with grimy dust, along with an eccentric lunatic, was not an ideal situation for the detective. He removed his head from the room and turned the key jammed in the keyhole, locking the door. If the thief wanted to go in there, he sure could. There was no escape in a tiny room like that. Plus, it would be hard to unlock the door and would be caught trying to open it since the keys were so old and rusty. Ha, the thief didn't stand a chance.

On the opposite side of the corridor of the main hall was a shiny black door with a slim window running down the centre of the upper half. The detective pushed on the golden door handle and opened the door. He was greeted by the sunset, pure and warm, as it smothered his skin in affection. The door had revealed a large garden with bushes and trees lining the tall metal fences. The healthy green grass was freshly cut giving off an amiable scent, to which the dark haired boy couldn't help but breathe in, admiring the care taken to preserving its beauty. Brown picnic tables had been placed near the building, complete with their own red parasols for when the weather was arid. There was a small pond at the foot of the garden. The slightly murky water was encircled by reeds and small rocks which had been cut so they could be used as seats without hurting people. Shuichi walked over to it and discovered dozens of large orange and white fish swimming about. The detective smiled; nature really was something beautiful. He caught himself falling into a light trance as he became enthralled watching the fish dance elegantly underneath the water, circling and looping in figures of eight. He snapped himself out of it remembering what he was supposed to be doing and returned to the inside of the building.

He approached the stairs and continued his investigation, climbing the steps one by one. The first floor, Shuichi learned, was a replica of the lower floor, excluding the storage room, main hall and door to the garden. Besides those features, everything else remained the same - the remaining rooms, the white interior and the staircase leading up to the next floor. At the end of that corridor was the next stair case climbing to a second floor, which Shuichi assumed would be the same as the ground and first floor. The only way to confirm his suspicions was to find out for himself. He advanced towards the stairs confidently, the only sounds he could hear being the echoing of his footsteps and the deafening silence of the rest of the building making him feel slightly uneasy. He held onto the clean banisters as he climbed the steps to the second floor.

When he reached the top there was no white to be seen. Everything was a deep red. A bloody red. The floors still shone in the daylight, reflections of the detective's shadowy silhouette splattered across the tiles like the remnants of a corpse on the ground, though obscured due to the gleaming sunset staring at him though the large windows, and the walls were still as spotless as the previous floors. The chandeliers were hung in the exact same positions as the ones below, glimmering elegantly from above with a taunting gaze. The dark haired boy felt a shiver run down his spine as he tensed up. This floor didn't seem quite right. It gave off a completely different atmosphere to every other room in this ginormous building. There were few doors on this particular floor, one of the left wall and two on the right. Shuichi approached the dark brown door on his left and opened the door cautiously. Slowly he sauntered into the room, only just passing the threshold before stopping and holding the door open with one hand. The room was pitch black, the only light was in the doorway where the boy stood as the daylight barely dared to creep in. He could make out a few cracked floorboards here and there and as a result decided not to advance further into the room in fear that the whole floor would collapse under his weight. He couldn't see anything in the room from where he was standing, which didn't help at all with the anxiety bubbling in his chest. He couldn't investigate further due to the flooring so he backed out of the doorway, closing the door behind him. Immediately he stepped back from the door and let out a deep breath he had been holding. There was something wrong with that room and he couldn't tell why. Clutching his chest with one hand, he tried his best to calm down. This whole floor had given him the creeps sending chills shooting throughout his entire body, however that room had made his heart race as if he had ran a marathon. It put him on edge. He looked around him hazardously, feeling as though he was being watched. He couldn't shake off this eerie feeling. And though it might have been all in his head, he could've sworn he'd just heard the muffled sound of childish laughter.

He edged uneasily away from the sinister door, almost reluctant to investigate the other rooms behind him. Unfortunately, this was his job. He was the detective who took the case, so now he had to do his part. He spun on his heels and reached for the polished door handle. He shut his eyes tightly and proceeded to turn it. His ears were met with alleviated taunting clattering and rattling as his eyes carefully opened. "What?" He muttered to himself, though relieved that the door wouldn't open. "Locked?" He walked towards the remaining door on his left and attempted to open it. "Also locked. That's strange... Why is there only one door unlocked?" His voice was a mere low murmur as he mumbled to no one in particular, voicing his thoughts. He turned to his left where a final claret staircase climbed towards a black door. He paced towards the tower of red, his smart shoes tapping on the marble floor causing a terror inducing echo to erupt from below his feet. His heart was beating at a hundred miles per hour, pounding so hard it seemed it wanted to escape his chest. Taking a deep breath he reached out for the banister.

"Detective! Stop investigating now! The guests are arriving." An excited voice ordered as the detective threw himself backwards in a state of panic. The trepidation began to drain from his body as he managed to muster up the courage to speak.

"W-Wait! W-Where do these stairs go?" He pointed to the staircase before him, turning to face the red haired photographer.

"The rooftop. I'm sure it's locked so you don't need to worry about that... I think... Come on, you've got to stay on the look out for the thief!" She gestured with her fingers for the detective to follow her as she disappeared down the white stairs where the faint sound of chatter had begun to seep through the ceilings. Shuichi didn't want to spend anymore time up here, though he was curious to see what the rooftop was like, so he followed the orders he had been given.

The pale boy chased the red head down to the ground floor where she was greeting guests and directing them to the main hall. "Miss Koizumi? Do you mind if I keep watch in the main hall? If I stay out here the thief could easily sneak into the hall using a different way in and snatch your camera. It's safer if I stay in there with you." An old couple, who couldn't have been younger than fifty despite their youthful looks, dressed in elegant attire sauntered past the pair as the detective spoke.

She greeted a few more guests, checking and accepting their invitations as they entered before responding. "Please make sure you do a good job, though. This camera is very important. There should be about... Perhaps sixty-eight more guests arriving. I'll stay here for now." She smiled at the detective as she allowed him to do as he pleased, though her smile was more directed at the beaming guest she was welcoming.

As Shuichi began to make his way towards the main hall a familiar voice called his name. He turned around curiously to discover the perpetrator. "Sayaka?" He waved to the singer he had been with earlier that day as his eyes flew open in awe. "Y-You look b-beautiful..." Shuichi pulled his hat over his face to hide the evident blush dusting his cheeks.

"Thank you so much, Shuichi." She beamed cheerfully, blushing in exchange of the compliment. She tucked a strand of her dark, now-curled, hair behind her ear as she fluttered her eyelashes bashfully at the detective. An indigo off-the-shoulder dress clung to her chest and slender form as it draped towards the ground elegantly, hiding the deep blue stiletto heels she wore underneath the skirt. "Will you come to the main hall with me?" She held out her hand invitingly, a warm smile creating little dimples in her cheeks.

The detective took her hand almost hesitantly. "S-Sure..." The pair walked hand in hand towards the main hall. Shuichi held the door open for the singer and she sauntered inside, the dress she wore trailing behind her on the ground. When they entered the room they discovered it was packed with people. Many were dancing slowly to the classical music being played, the melody reminded Shuichi of the music Kaede had been playing for him the week prior and his face Iit up with a happy glow. He felt peaceful despite worrying about the next appearance of the phantom thief. Other people were sitting at the tables towards the back of the room whilst others picked food from the vast selection of buffet food. He checked the time on his phone: _**19:57**_. And damn was his battery low... It wouldn't be long before the thief arrived. Shuichi turned to leave Sayaka to keep a look out for the perpetrator of the robberies when he felt a hand tug on his sleeve.

"Wait! I want to investigate with you! Please? It's the least you could do..." Sayaka looked up at him with big, desperate eyes, finally letting the boy go.

Shuichi pondered this for a moment. It would be helpful if someone else assisted him. And then he remembered Kyoko. Where was she? Maybe he should keep an eye out for her too... "I don't have a problem with that. Just stand where you can see everything... Like at the back there. There's a lot of people over there and there's a possibility that the thief could be hiding within the crowd. I'm sure he enjoys to hide in plain sight, just to antagonise us more." He pointed at the far end of the hall, opposite the tall stage he stood beside. "Come find me as soon as you see anything suspicious and I'll check it out."

The girl grinned from ear to ear. "Got it!" She dashed off, however slightly clumsily due to the heels she wore, and got to work. Shuichi watched as she weaved in and out between people to reach the other end of the hall. He was glad she wanted to help. As far as he was concerned, Kyoko definitely _wasn't._ Where could she be, anyway? She certainly seemed like she knew what was up earlier on at the cafe. _Not that obvious now, huh?_ He mocked his fellow detective to himself silently. He figured she'd just said it to rub in his face that she was much better than him, though he knew she wasn't the type to do such a thing. She was mature, and not at all childish. He kind of felt bad about mocking her. Oh well, he still chalked this up as a small victory. For now. If she didn't show up this heist either, she'd have a lot of explaining to do.

Hours had passed and the ability of being aware of the time had now slipped out of Shuichi's grasp. His phone had died God knows how long ago and now the only way he would be able to tell if the thief was on the scene was if he paid extremely close attention to people around him, as well as keeping a firm eye on the photographer being targeted by the criminal. He had just seen the red head talking to a short girl in an orange kimono and blonde pigtails in the middle of the room, he smiled knowing everything so far was going well. _Mahiru was safe. But what about Sayaka?_ Shuichi peered towards the buffet table where Sayaka should have been standing guard, only to discover the singer wasn't there. He looked again, more closely this time, scanning the people and tables for the girl in indigo.

A hand tapped his shoulder. "Shuichi?"

He spun around instantaneously, yelping a little at the sudden contact. "Sayaka? Why are you here? Weren't you supposed to be looking out for the thief?" He furrowed his eyebrows a little, trying to suppress a disappointed yet perplexed expression.

She looked away towards her shoulder. The regal music dancing through the air around her made her beautiful form appear more alluring. "I _was_... But I wanted to dance."

"Dance?"

Their eyes met. "With you."

Silence. Agonising, awkward silence.

"Wouldn't your boyfriend be upset by that? I'm sure he wouldn't want another guy touching you..." Guilt began to creep up into his stomach where it began to attack violently like a tame cat turned savage.

Sayaka looked down sadly. "I-I would have danced with him if he came... I just really want to dance with somebody." Their eyes met once more and Shuichi could see raw emotion in her eyes. Sorrow. Desperation. Even hints of guilt. "Will you please dance with me, Shuichi?"

He nodded hesitantly, worrying about the case and Mahiru's safety, as the singer took his hand and lead him towards the centre of the room. "I... I don't know how to dance." He smiled sheepishly, part of him hoping his excuse could get him out of this.

She put her hands on his shoulders delicately. "Just follow my lead." She winked at him in a friendly manner as she flickered her eyes down to his hands, silently telling him to put his hands around her waist. After a couple of seconds, he understood what she wanted. He slowly lifted his hands.

 **CLICK.** The music stopped. The lights blacked out. The silent room was filled with childish, evil, yet so _familiar_ , laughter.

Shuichi immediately snapped himself away from the singer. He knew that laughter from anywhere. It was the same creepy laughter that taunted him in his sleep. The laughter that lurked in the back of his mind. The laughter of the phantom thief. Once again, _**the game had begun.**_

Light. Beams of light collected together on a singular spot in the middle of the stage. Underneath the spotlight stood a boy in a white suit - which definitely didn't look like one - checkered along the sides. A boy in a black leather peaked cap and those white silk gloves that had been dragged softly across the detective's cheek. A boy in a long, black cloak, ragged tears at the bottom, ultimately indicating his power and superiority. The masked fiend himself. "Hello everyone! Thank you _dearly_ for attending this wonderful party! I'm _so glad_ you could all make it this evening." His sinister words curled off of his tongue as he spoke into a microphone held right up to his face with his usual childish sing-song voice.

"WHO ON EARTH DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?"

"Hm?" The purple haired criminal, hair tied back out of his slender face with a clip, looked down from the stage towards the culprit.

"I _said_ : WHO ON EARTH DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?" The perpetrator of the shouting stormed towards the stage, her silhouette coming into view as the lights reflected off of her thin form.

The thief smirked deviously. "Ah, Mahiru Koizumi. So good to see you! You know, I'm really glad you've handed yourself over to me - it saves me from coming to find you myself! And I only like to play hide and seek with _one special person..._ " He peered over towards Shuichi, who was frozen in shock. His voice dropped to a low, harsh whisper as he grinned into the mic. "Although... I knew you would step up to me from the very beginning..."

He was clearly enjoying this all. Teasing people was how he had his fun, Shuichi knew this from their previous encounter and he was never going to forget it. He definitely teased the detective in more than one way... Mahiru was fuming. "Why you-" She stormed onto the stage, thundering with pure rage and hatred. "Leave!" Mahiru's demand was only met with cackles of malice and mockery.

Shuichi spectated as he watched Mahiru, the person he was supposed to be protecting, climb onto the stage with the person she was meant to be protected from. He panicked. "Mahiru! Stop! Come down from there!" He called out to her, trying to reason with the red haired girl blinded with anger. She refused to listen.

The thief stepped towards her, not afraid of the taller girl at all. "Oh really, I'd _love to_ , believe me." He took another step forwards, dropping the mic onto the stage, making a huge screeching racket as it hit the floor. He didn't need it now. The person he wanted to lure out was right where he wanted her. She had played right into his hands.

She, in return, stepped forwards threateningly, marching right up to the criminal. Immense frustration radiated off of her as she leaned down to meet his face, only mere inches apart. "Then. _Go._ " She spat. But it was too late.

_**THUD!** _ **>**

Camera snatched from around her neck, the girl fell from the stage crashing to the floor. She landed in a confused, angry, yet terrified heap as the boy who had thrown her with all his might sneered and giggled. It has happened in a matter of seconds - no one would have seen it coming. "Nishishi~ As you wish! Hope you had a nice _trip_!" He dashed off, leaping off of the stage and darting through the doors leading towards the exit.

"Sayaka! Help Mahiru and call the police! I'll go after him!" Without waiting for an answer, the detective gave chase to the purple haired crook. This time he definitely wouldn't be the one running for his life. He sprinted into the hallway. The front door was still locked. He could've only ventured upstairs. Taking a deep breath, the dark haired boy ran after him, climbing the stairs. _Go, go, go! Don't be too late..._

The first floor was empty, only the booming laughter of the boy could indicate where he was. _The second floor_. His stomach dropped and the unsettling feelings came rushing back, washing over his body in an uneasy tsunami. He couldn't turn back now. It was too late to turn back now. He dashed up the stairs into the corridor of blood red. Red. Red. Red. Red. Where was that damn thief? _Oh no..._ He stared down the hall towards the staircase he had yet to explore. He'd have to now anyway, the door at the top had been swung open letting in a chill inducing draft. Damn it. He had to do this. He mustered up as much courage his trembling body could manage and followed the scent of lies and criminal activity. He emerged from the final staircase and surveyed the rooftop. It was a wide, desolate area. No walls were protecting anyone from falling. It was dangerous. It was perfect for an escape route - there was nothing stopping him from escaping when all the thief had to do was jump. The soft night breeze fanned across Shuichi's body as the crescent moon smiled eerily down upon him. Right before the detective was the phantom thief, fiddling with the camera whilst sauntering nonchalantly towards the edge of the rooftop.

"S-Stop right there!" Shuichi shouted, pointing a finger at the criminal.

He spun around on his heels playfully, a smile developing as he waved with one hand. "Oh! Mr detective! I was beginning to think you weren't going to come." His face fell into a melodramatic pout. "I thought perhaps you were too busy _cheating on me_ with that goody-two-shoes singer to give me a satisfying playtime tonight." He smiled again, having feigned his sadness. He clearly didn't care at all. In fact, it seemed he didn't want to bother toying with the detective tonight. "Cheating is _bad_ , Shuichi. Very, _very_ bad. Don't do it again."

Shuichi's eyes flew open in shock of the accusation he had just received. "Ch-Cheating? I-I would never! And we aren't dating!" He retaliated defensively, almost pathetically.

"Oh? Is that so? I don't like it when people lie to me... I _hate_ liars." The violet eyed menace, of course, knew a lie when he heard one. Messing with his enemy was just a ton of fun. He had a little bit of time to spare anyway, so why not waste it playing with his favourite plaything?

Shuichi gritted his teeth angrily - accusations like this were incredibly bad. He dealt with infidelity cases all the time and the heartbreak which tore through clients when they discovered the truth about their partners also ripped through himself as well. He would never put anyone through that barbaric experience of feeling betrayed, worthless and unloved. "Wh- Don't you dare accuse me of something so nasty! I'm nothing like you - I'm not a monster! Sayaka has a boyfriend!"

The thief giggled as he walked closer to the detective. He could see the boy in black was shaking. He knew he was putting on a brave act just to intimidate him. He could read Shuichi like a damn comic book. "That's good." He purred as he brought them face to face, almost exchanging breaths as the thief yanked the detective's head forward by his collar. He lowered his voice to a seductive yet malicious whisper. "Because you're all mine, detective."

"Shut up!" Shuichi pushed the smaller boy away from him with all his strength however the purple haired imp pulled him onto his knees. Shuichi was now below the thief who had dodged the taller boy almost falling onto him and now was standing above him, looking down on him - not that he wasn't looked down on before, the thief clearly had a superiority complex. "How dare you! I hate you! Why would I ever belong to you? I don't belong to anyone. I'm a person - not a possession you can mess around with. I'll rip that mask off of your smug face!" Shuichi wasn't nervous anymore. Anger coursed through his veins. He was uncharacteristically fierce, but who could blame him? Shuichi _damn_ Saihara wasn't a toy to play with. He had been forced onto his knees before his eccentric man who he despised. He wanted nothing more than to get up and tear the mask from his face, but he knew hurting the boy was out of the question - especially when he was in possession of the camera. The thief may have enjoyed messing about with him and his emotions the last time they met, but this time would be different.

The thief's face fell for a split second as if he had actually been hurt by those words. They sliced through him like thousands of sharp daggers piercing through him. His face lit back up as he threw his head back in a huge fit of laughter. "OH GOD- NEE-HEEHEE! _Y-YOU_ THINK YOU CAN BOSS _ME_ AROUND? That's just too funny! Evil supreme leaders don't take orders from worthless peasants. I have thousands of lackeys who could take you out in an instant! Don't get cocky with me, Shuichi." That's right. Insult him. Hurt him. _Break him._ Ruin that little confidence of his until he can't fight back. A devious grin smothered the entire of his visible face. Every word he said became more and more vicious and malicious, the detective's face plagued with hurt egging him on.

"W-Worthless? You really think I'm worthless? I'm the only person playing your damn game. Everyone's sick of you!" Shuichi felt the burning sensation behind his nose indicating that tears were coming. _Tears? Really? Pathetic._ He held them back to the best of his ability. He would not cry for the man towering above him. He was just trying to distract Shuichi and he knew it.

The thief tilted his head to the side and stroked his chin as if in thought. "Do I really think that? Hmm... Of course I do! Nishishi!" He cackled once again watching the detective's heart shatter right in front of his eyes. "Aw! Don't look at me like that! I was lying! I'm a liar! You're lots of fun! And even though you hate me, I could never hate you, my _beloved detective._ " His voice was back to that enchanting whisper he used whenever he wanted to taunt Shuichi. Whenever he wanted to work himself into the depths of his subconscious so that he could haunt the boy for the rest of his life. And he knew it worked every time.

Shuichi found himself relieved that he was being lied to, though part of him still couldn't fully believe his statements. Yes, he was a liar. Who's to say he wasn't lying just then? He didn't understand the dictator or what the hell went on inside his head. He was an enigma. A mystery. A puzzle waiting to be solved. And, by God, did Shuichi love puzzles. "Stop teasing me!" He tried to stand up only to be shoved back down again by his shoulders.

The smaller boy smirked, placing a warm gloved hand on Shuichi's cheek and trailing a finger down the side of his face, softly laughing to himself under his breath as the detective flinched away from his delicate movements. "I can tease you in other ways, if you'd like." He winked and bit his lip, his ego being fed as the dark haired boy blushed a deep shade of crimson at his bold remark.

Shuichi averted his eyes and pulled down his hat over his face. God, he was embarrassed. "N-No! Don't say things like that!"

"Why not? Are you falling for me, perhaps?" He knew that the detective would never do such a thing, but he enjoyed watching his expressions and the reddening of his face as he was taunted. What he didn't like, on the contrary, was the way he hid his face from the thief with that black cap. He'd have to do something about that later.

"Not a chance." Shuichi lifted his foot and kicked the caped terror hard in the thigh, sending him stumbling backwards with a yelp. Shuichi stood up as quickly as he could to avoid being shoved back down for a second time as the thief regained his balance and avoided falling. Both boys were were they had began. Face to face on the rooftop. Thief and detective. Criminal and authority.

"OW! That really hurt! That was super, duper mean!" It didn't hurt too much, the thief just enjoyed exaggerating and being extremely dramatic. He had an amazing tolerance to pain, considering all he had been through in the past. He was never a boring character.

"It was supposed to. Now give me the camera and the mask." He held out his hand expectantly. Shuichi knew it would never work, but he had no idea what to do now. Both had been injured and he wanted to avoid getting into a fight. He had no idea what the criminal was capable of - he had said he has thousands of lackeys not that long ago. For someone so small and thin to be in control of thousands of subordinates, he had to be one hell of a fighter. Shuichi, on the contrary, had never gotten into a fight in his life. He didn't know how to defend himself at all, even verbally he was unable.

"Okay... If that's what you really want." The thief lowered his head in feigned defeat and sauntered towards the detective. As soon as the two were close enough to put the camera in the detective's hand, the thief grabbed his wrist instead, twisting it painfully shooting volts of agony through his arm and pulled him around in front of him before forcing the taller boy into a tight headlock. "SIKE!"

His air flow had been restricted and Shuichi found himself flailing desperately in the criminal's grasp. It was then Shuichi decided that he needed self defense lessons. "Ngh! St-Stop! Pl- ngh- Please!" He began smacking the boy's arms, noticing how frail they really were. They were so thin Shuichi felt as if he could break them with his violent smacking.

"Now, now. Calm down. I'm just having a little fun, see." The phantom thief used his other hand to point the lense of the camera towards the pair. "Say: phantom thief!" A blinding flash rinsed both boys' faces with a dazzling white light, followed by a clicking sound. "Selfies are fun, don't you think? Now we can always remember the time we have together! Romantic, huh?" He loosened his grip a bit to let him breathe. It wouldn't be any fun if the detective lost consciousness or died on him. Death would be quite an issue for him, unlike knocking the detective out, though. He didn't want to lose his best toy, after all.

As soon as he was given the opportunity, he filled his lungs with fresh oxygen, panting like a dog. "St- hah... Stop taking p-pictures..." He smacked the boys arm again as it was tightened around his neck once more. He struggled beneath the shorter man's hold, his efforts in vain hence they only put him in more pain.

"Nope! Souvenirs!" Flash! Click! Flash! Click! Photograph after photograph after photograph, all showing the detective yearning for air at the mercy of a grinning phantom thief, a wide, childish smile on his face. He looked so innocent and happy, despite his spiteful actions. "Oh! Shuichi! I'm not a photographer but I could definitely picture us together." He spoke in a smug tone, almost proud of himself for saying that.

Shuichi reached up for the mask hiding the criminal's face as subtly as he could, still hammering the other boy's arm with attacks using his free hand. "N-No... I d-don't... wa- ngh- want pict-... ures!"

Unfortunately for Shuichi, the masked menace knew what the detective was planning and hastily kicked him in the back of the knee, sending the taller boy collapsing onto the floor, sprawled out in front of him. "It would be stupid to move now, you know. But that's okay! You look so ravishing down there, Shuichi. Laying below me... It's where you're supposed to be."

"I told you to stop teasing me like that! I'm not interested!" He rolled onto his back and sat up, staring up at the nefarious face of his captor. He attempted to stand up, putting one leg out in front of him.

"Foolish move." His words were as cold as ice as he raised his own foot and slammed it back down onto the detective's leg, stomping it almost into the ground. Shuichi screamed in pain as those tears he had so desperately been trying to hold back began escaping down his cheeks. The pain rushed through him in surges every time he tried to move his leg.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT?" Shuichi practically screamed, clutching his injury with both hands tightly.

"I told you to stay down. You didn't." He leant down towards the detective's tear soaked face. "This mission is incredibly important to me and my organisation. Without this camera, our plan cannot succeed. Miss Mahiru Koizumi also has a picture of me committing a crime on here, which cannot be deleted since this camera is custom made to her preferences. Taking the camera is a win-win for my side. Though hers is just a lose-lose. If I fail this mission, there will be people who will be very, very angry with me." He wasn't joking around anymore. His face and tone were dead serious and his glare pierced into Shuichi's soul like lasers.

Shuichi choked some sobs back and used one hand to wipe his eyes, he couldn't continue crying in front of this man no matter how much pain he was in. "H-How did y-you get the camera t-to work? Y-You n-need Mahiru's-" He was cut off.

"Her fingerprints? Yep! I know! Check out my glove! They were also custom made. And red head thinks she's special! Nee-heehee! Anyway! In the fingertips of the gloves are fingerprints just like Mahiru's so I can use this camera no problem! Neat, right?" His childish self had returned as he explained how he had made part of his scheme possible. "Or maybe I'm lying. Who knows? Maybe I'm just an incredible hacker. You'll never know if I've already gotten into your phone and unearthed all of your embarrassing secrets... Just kidding! I'm not the one who does the hacking."

The screeching of sirens could be heared in the distance, wailing loudly. Shuichi marked this up as another triumph of the evening. _Thank the Lord- no, thank Sayaka!_ Shuichi couldn't help but smile at the frustrated expression his nemesis had pulled. "It's so sad that you'll never be able to use that camera for whatever reason it is you want it for now they're here."

"They haven't caught me yet, and they won't catch me now! Sure, I'm mad you got your little _girlfriend_ to call the police but I really couldn't care less. At the end of the day I'm always going to disappear into the shadows where no one can catch me. Now! Because you've made me angry I'm going to punish you!" He smirked as he saw the detective tense up in fear.

"Excuse m-me? I think I heard wrong. P-Punish?" He shifted himself backwards slightly, away from the sadistic man above him.

"You heard correctly, my beloved. Now give me a _big smile_. There's no need to be afraid, dear." He pointed the camera towards Shuichi, trying to find the perfect angle. "I want to see that handsome face of yours." _**Flash! Click!**_ "Do you know how much I adore your face? Your body? You're perfect." _**Flash! Click!**_ "I love how red your face is right now. Could it be you get off on praise? That's so dirty!" Flash! Click!

The detective pulled his hat down over his face again. "N-No! I'm not like that! You're just embarrassing me and I don't like pictures!"

"I hate that hat! You'd look so much better without it!" He snatched it from Shuichi's head, throwing it across the roof. _**Flash! Click!**_ "Much better. I love your hair. It looks so soft." He stoked his hand underneath the detectives chin and held his face up to the camera. "Mm... Your eyes are so golden and beautiful. Are you the sunset? Because you'd make a good shot!" _**Flash! Click!**_

"Please stop... Give me my hat back!" Shuichi hated this man. Absolutely despised him with every fiber of his aching body and mind. But deep down, he made him feel things no one else had ever, and he hated that too. He hated that it was all out of his control and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Every word the thief uttered reddened his face more and more, he could feel himself burning up. His cheeks were practically on fire.

"Why? I need to savour the moment. Pictures are supposed to be worth a thousand words, but there are no words for a picture as beautiful as you." Flash! Click! He grinned flirtatiously, his smile faltering as he heard the voices of police in the building. He began to panic, too caught up in having fun. "Ugh- I was having a lot of fun playing with you but it appears I have to go now. Pity. Oh well! We'll see each other again. Maybe later tonight I could warm up your colour balance, what do you say?"

"P-Please don't go..." Shuichi forced the words from his throat. He was desperate to catch him even though right now he just wanted him to leave and take his stupid photography themed pickup lines with him. If he could stall him for a few more seconds the police would capture him and Shuichi wouldn't have to deal with all of this anymore.

"Aww, what this? The detective wants me to stay? Could it be you truly are falling for me after all?" He smirked playfully. The foolish detective didn't have a clue of how easy it was to know what he was thinking.

Shuichi was going to hate himself for saying this. "M-Maybe I-I do..." His stomach twisted uncomfortably. As he looked further away from the purple haired enigma..

"I see. Well then, I'll let you make up your mind and I'll ask you the next time we play a fun game of cat and mouse." He stroked Shuichi's hair gently and bent down, lightly pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, pecking it lightly. "I'll definitely steal your heart."

"W-Wait! No! Don't go!" Despite being extremely surprised about the kiss, he couldn't say he hated it completely. It was warm and soft, unlike the aggressive treatment he had received previously. It made his heart flutter and stomach churn and twist uncomfortably at the same time. He couldn't let the thief escape now - not when he was this close to capture!

The villain scooped Shuichi's hat off of the ground and began walking towards the edge of the roof. "Try not to miss me too much! Oh- and don't worry, we'll be meeting much sooner than you think." He peered down over the edge of the building, looking ready to leap. "See you soon, detective! I promise I'll think of something really, really fun for next time! I hope you give me a thrilling playtime too!" And with that he jumped and was engulfed by the shadows.

"No!" He reached out for the boy in white as the darkness of the night consumed his being. The only proof he had ever been there was the childish laughter carried by the wind, echoing in the distance.

Footsteps. Shuichi turned around to see several police officers behind him, their guns pointed out in front of them cautiously. The tallest of the group approached the boy sitting on the floor, injured knee to his chest. "Where's the thief?" He asked, his bald head shining in the moonlight.

Shuichi turned to face them, wincing in agony as his leg began to ache again. For such a small boy, the phantom thief sure did know how to deal a significant amount of damage. Shuichi was starting to wonder if his leg had been broken. "You just missed him. He took the camera with him." _And my hat..._ He pointed towards where the boy had leapt from the rooftop of the manor and two officers sprinted towards where they had been directed to.

"We were too late again, huh? Damn..." He looked at Shuichi's leg which he was hugging to his chest below his tear stained face. "Are you injured?"

"Yeah. He twisted my wrist, put me in a tight headlock, kicked me in the back of the knee and then stomped on it. I can't move my leg without excruciating pain tearing through me." He tried to relax his leg, the pressure his hands were putting on it hurting him.

The authority nodded understandingly and took out his walkie-talkie from his black bullet proof vest. "Hello? We're going to need medical assistance at the Pearlhall Manor. Send a couple of people over, we don't need a full team for a leg injury." The pair waited for the ambulance to show up, talking about what had happened that evening. Shuichi chose to leave out certain details such as the flirting and the pickup lines and... And the kiss... But explained everything else he found necessary. When the ambulance arrived, a pair of medical staff looked at Shuichi's leg for him. Luckily, nothing was broken - it had just been sprained in quite an awkward way. They helped him down the stairs and gave him a pair of crutches to use for the time being; his leg would be fine in a couple of days or so if he didn't walk too much. Sayaka ran from the main hall where police had kept everyone inside trying to calm down the commotion and shouted for the detective.

"Shuichi!" She looked at the crutches and the dried tears on his red, puffy face, analysing his situation the best she could. "Oh my goodness... What happened to you? You look a mess..."

Shuichi forced a small laugh. "It's a long story, but don't worry - I'll be fine... What happened to Mahiru?"

Sayaka's face fell. "She's being questioned by the police. Medics just checked her injuries and they said she'd be fine, fortunately."

"I see... I'm glad she's alright." Pangs of guilt targeted his chest as he remembered that he couldn't save her camera. _He really was a pathetic detective. Worthless. Just like the thief had said._

"Excuse me, sir." A police officer tapped Shuichi's shoulder. When Shuichi turned to face her, she continued. "Do you have a way of getting home? We can drive you home, if you'd like."

Before Shuichi could speak, Sayaka stepped in. "It's okay - my driver can take us both home. Only if that's alright with you, Shuichi. I need to repay you for not escorting you here and forcing you to make your own way here, after all."

"Yeah, thank you. That's really kind of you." Shuichi beamed at her as the police woman wished them a good night and left to continue investigating. Sayaka and Shuichi left the manor and got into the back of a long, black limousine. The beige seats lined the walls of the vehicle, allowing Shuichi to put his leg up without causing too much discomfort.

Across the road further down the street was a white van parked on a stranger's driveway. They didn't know who it belonged to, and why should they care? They did as they pleased. The thief scrambled into the back of the vehicle, smiling as he held up the camera, waving it about in front of his face. "Hey, hey, hey! Mission accomplished!"

He was greeted back with three angry faces. Pigtails the most furious of all. "Police? Again? Do you realise how much trouble you're causing us? You can be so selfish sometimes! Aergia got back from the manor twenty minutes ago! This detective of yours needs to go - he's a major distraction." She pointed to the passenger seat in the front of the van where a petite girl, probably shorter than the thief himself (however impossible it may seem) with long almond hair draping past her thighs sat. Parts of her hair had been braided at the top, but due to her lazy nature she had failed to finish it off, letting it fall down by her sides. She wore the same type of uniform as everyone else - white jacket, white trousers, black shoes and a checkered scarf.

"I was leaving! But then he chased me, told me to stop and I did! I didn't think he'd keep me busy for so long. I even injured him to keep him from taking the camera, so you'd better thank me for that. And besides - all she had to do was play with the lights for my grand entrance whilst I did all the hard work!" He sighed, rolling his eyes. He had done what was asked of him, so why couldn't they just all shut up and leave him alone? He removed his cloak, tossing it idly onto the floor.

The girl in the front piped up, her voice high and smug. "Oh come on boss, we all know you have a massive crush on the bastard. That's why you let him stop you from escaping for so long! Ha! I bet you only hurt him so you could listen to him whining in pain because you're secretly a huge sadist! You're such a vile prick! I can't believe our mighty evil leader is gay for some stupid detective!" For such a small girl who appeared so innocent, she definitely had a mouth on her. A crude one, too.

_**SLAP!** _

A strong hand from the driver's seat had connected with her face, shutting her up. "That's enough, Aergia. We're all angry at him for holding us up but you're taking things too far." Vigour's harsh voice made the small girl flinch. The leader stayed silent.

"Um... Boss? Are you okay?" Pigtails leaned down, inspecting his expressionless face. He stood as still as a statue, his face unmoving. "Now you've done it, Aergia! Well done!"

"How is that _my_ fault? It's his fault for never being able to tell when I'm playing with him!" Aergia pouted, disliking the confrontation.

"Maybe you should learn to watch your vulgar mouth!"

"Maybe you should pull yourself out from up your brothers ass and actually do something for D.I.C.E rather than just whine at everyone for doing something even slightly against Shade's wishes! I bet you have a massive crush on him too! What's the bet you touch yourself to the thought of him? Incestuous bitch!"

Vigour stepped in once more, tired of the fighting. "Both of you, shut up. You're not helping the situation, you spoiled brats."

"Nee-heehee I'm fine. I was just thinking." The hat he was holding slipped from his fingers as he stared out of the front window of the van. He watched intently as cars drove past, waiting for a specific one to pass by. A limousine rushed past, the tinted windows rolled down so Shuichi's face could be seen as he spoke to the girl in the car with him. Locking onto the car, he pointed and with a shout began to demand. "Follow that vehicle! _That's an order_."


	6. Truthful Lies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Torture (no cutting anyone open or anything, just a bit of electricity. Thought I'd put this here just in case.)  
> Thank you all for reading this far though!!

As soon as the exhausted detective arrived home, he thanked both Sayaka Maizono and her chauffeur for the ride and, using the crutches he had been given, limped pathetically inside. The journey from the lobby to the ninth floor was definitely a tricky one. It was long and tiresome; Shuichi struggled to keep his balance as he fought the drowsiness creeping up on him. As soon as he burst into his apartment he kicked his shoes off and headed straight for the bathroom, using the toilet, washing his hands and face as thoroughly as he could to rid himself of the tear stains streaking his puffy cheeks, and brushing his teeth with more than just a little pain and effort. Then, arms aching, he headed for his bedroom and climbed into bed plopping his crutches down beside the bed on the floor. Every movement he made sent stabbing sensations shooting subversively through his leg, up his body. Saying it was torture, for Shuichi (who had the pain tolerance of a fly), was certainly not an understatement. Laying down, he pulled one of his two pillows out from under his head and propped it beneath his injured leg in a position he found somewhat comfortable as the pain had been significantly reduced. He stared at the ceiling, oblivious as to why all that mayhem had happened.

Tonight had been a train wreck. A distressing roller coaster of raw emotion and pain stirred in with a fair amount of guilt and regret. Mahiru, the person he had sworn to himself to protect, had been thrown from the stage by the menace he needed to protect her from. The same devious imp had forced him onto the ground _twice_ before twisting his wrist and head locking him, then kicking him in the back of the knee and, with the complete weight of his body, stomped forcefully onto his left leg. His knees ached, grazed from the uneven tar rooftop. The only violence the thief had shown previously was throwing vases and other expensive items around, in which carried no intention of actually hurting the detective. This time though? The criminal had _scared_ Shuichi. He was terrified even though at the end of their encounter he tried to redeem himself for his cruelty. Shuichi, in the back of his mind, thought that he deserved it all. All of the humiliation and the pain which came in overwhelming surges, the guilt too. So much guilt. Was it a punishment for not exciting the thief enough? It was then that he remembered the sinister, serious tone the rogue had used when talking about why he needed the camera. His tone was deadpan. A stoic expression erasing his usual smiley one, a pointed edge in his voice sharp enough to slice through him - a serrated blade that could rip through his entire life remorselessly. His intense glare stung Shuichi's eyes, the dazzling violet clouded with inhumane venom. Had Shuichi driven him to this state? _Guilt. So much guilt._ But even so, criminals didn't deserve sympathy. At least that's what Shuichi desperately tried to convince himself. Ever since he solved that one murder case no one else could all those years ago, he had been plagued with regret and remorse. The look the murderer had given him... It tore through him. So much rage and fury were held in such small sorrowful eyes. It was as if he were looking into his soul - the eyes were the window to the soul after all. If Shuichi had understood the circumstances of the murder, perhaps he wouldn't have helped the police solve the case. The crime had only been committed in order to protect someone he loved... Shuichi was truly the worst. He was awful. Horrible. Nasty. _Cruel_. Did the phantom thief commit his crimes for the same reason? Was there someone he needed to protect? From what? Or who? He would never understand the mysterious puzzle of a man. He truly was one of a kind. Shuichi just hoped his intentions were pure, rather than full of malice. He'd find it easier to forgive him afterwards for being such a nuisance and putting him through so much trouble just trying to persue him.

And then his mind unconsciously wandered to the soft touches the thief had smothered his face with. The sweet compliments and the pickup lines tugged at his heartstrings. Were they lies? Distractions? Whatever they were, they initiated an elongated eruption of foreign feelings in his stomach - most of which made him feel slightly uncomfortable, new to this intense sensation. He wasn't sure if it was good or bad, but considering it was the phantom thief who had caused them Shuichi decided that it could only mean something negative. But the kiss... It was so soft and warm. Shuichi could even describe it as loving, if he were to go that far. The feeling of his lips lingered on his skin as Shuichi reached up to touch his forehead, wiping any trace of the troublemaker off of him.

And telling him that he would steal his heart? Just what was he trying to do? Was it another personal challenge he had set for himself just to make his game more amusing? Shuichi didn't want to be a toy. He wanted to be seen as a capable detective who never fails. Someone who is intelligent, confident and able. That wasn't him. He was just apprentice detective Shuichi Saihara - there was nothing special about him. He didn't see why the mischief maker had taken quite an interest in him. Letting out an exasperated groan of a sigh, he rubbed his tired eyes and drifted off to sleep. He was going to tell Kaito and Maki about this tomorrow. He'd need help going about his day either way.

-

She opened her eyes. Black. A blinding darkness enveloped her entire being as cold, harsh reality began to sink in. She understood what her situation was. Her wrists and ankles were bound tightly with thick rope to the arms and legs of a heavy wooden chair, her hands taped thoroughly around two short, thick metal poles protruding from the ends of the arm rests. She couldn't move her fingers. She couldn't even wriggle them a mere millimeter. Her feet were barely touching the floor, indicating that she was sitting somewhere higher than the ground. A leather strap snaked around her slender waist tightly, keeping her bound to the back of the chair. A metal choker kept an unyielding reign on her neck, attached to the back of the chair too. There was scarcely an inch of struggle room. Any time she desperately attempted to move, the rope dug into her flesh more and the metal clasped around her neck became tighter and less generous regarding supplying the girl oxygen. The only conclusion she could come up with was that she was strapped to an unfamiliar type of torture device. The thought terrified her. Though there was nothing covering her mouth acting as a gag, a soft fabric blindfolded her, tied back behind her head. How she had gotten there? She didn't know. Her brain failed to provide her with plausible explanations, her head a muddled mess. God, did her brain ache. Her memories only allowed her to venture back to earlier that day, she presumed. Was it still the same day? How long had she been out for? All she knew was that she was on her way to an important venue when a van had pulled up beside her. She didn't think anything of it until two men leapt out of it and grabbed her, kicking and screaming helplessly for her life, as they dragged her into the back of the vehicle. Throwing her inside and slamming the doors shut, the van sped off as if it had never been there to begin with. The confused girl had no idea what happened next, the only thing her disorientated brain could register was the dull pain in her lower arm, centred around her wrist spreading up her arm and towards her hand. Had she been injected with a sedative drug? And that's when she began to really panic. Her bare hands were touching the chair. She suddenly became paranoid and insecure, almost shaking as she hopelessly tried to keep herself composed. Trying her best not to break her walls of equanimity, she sealed her eyes shut once again, not that it would make a difference; she couldn't see at all from the very beginning.

She was blinded which as a result heightened her other senses; she wanted to make good use of that ability while she still could. The room was freezing, but not as cold as her shivering body as her teeth chattered through shaky breaths. The numbingly glacial atmosphere thumbed her pale skin delicately as if she were made of glass. It didn't want to break her, unlike them. Right now, the defensive ghostly touches were her only form of protection, and she welcomed them, needing all the help to remain calm and sane that she could get. All she could smell was the iron-like stench of metal. Like a stealthy spy, an assassin, it snuck up on her before attacking and invading her body. Her throat and chest burned as she resisted to urge to cough and expel it from her lungs. She had been too panicked to listen before, but now she had focused her breathing to be as steady as possible and had forced herself into relaxing, she heard voices from behind her, carried effortlessly through the halls. She could make out parts of a conversation here and there, but not the whole thing. Every few words, the conversation grew louder and louder. Were the people out there her captors? Where they going to come in? She froze, prepared.

"Are you sure that she'll be of any assistance to us? We could be wasting precious resources on her, you know? I may be an airhead but I'm not a completely reckless idiot." _A voice._

" _Of course_ she will. I did see her with our target, after all. And I'm _never_ wrong. We're going to use her to get exactly what we desire. Believe me, I'm sure the results will be... _Entertaining._ " _Another voice_ , more snooty than the first.

"Understood. Well haha, I hope she has a shocking experience! If my invention suffers from any technical difficulties then gimme a call. See ya!" Footsteps echoed from behind the petrified girl as they faded out into a deafening silence. But 'shocking experience'? Those few words shook her to her core. What could they mean? Was she strapped to an electric chair? The fearful girl had more than just an idea.

The door to the room she had been confined in swung open with a loud clang. Another echoed sound insinuated that the door had been closed afterwards. A clicking sound highlighting that the door had been locked. There was no way out. Slowly, the figure approached her as she pretended to still be unconscious. _Tap... Tap... Tap... Tap..._ Her heart was racing. Pounding. Hammering. Thump, thump, thump. Adrenaline pulsing through her veins rushed and rushed and rushed. She heard him walk in front of her and the footsteps came to a halt.

He bluntly said her full name, expecting her to answer him with an array of fun-to-answer and incredibly cliché questions, featuring the famous 'where am I' and 'who are you'. This was going to be exhilarating. The other stayed quiet. She pretended to be trapped in a deep slumber where no one could ever hurt her. "Miss, I know you're awake." _Silence._ She didn't dare move. She didn't dare speak. Suddenly, the ear-splitting sound of skin slapping ferociously against skin reverberated across the walls as the female emitted a plangent shriek in response to the pain. Blood rushed to her stinging cheek. "Ah, that's good. I'm glad you finally decided to reply."

"What do you want?" Her tone was calm yet powerfully venomous and her bravery genuine. She was determined to get answers before escaping.

"Isn't it obvious? It's you." He chuckled lightly, his laughter matching her level of hatred.

"What would you need _me_ for?" She spat, though she kept her cool. Not once did she feel that she was losing her edge. _Stay calm and collected. You've got this._

"Hmm..." She heard the male walk behind her so he was now talking into her ear. "A lot of reasons, actually. But we don't have time to discuss those right now. If you're a good girl and do _everything_ we ask, we won't hurt you. Not _too much_." He stretched out certain words to emphasise his point, never once forgetting to allow the taunting edge in his nasally voice to roll threateningly off of his tongue.

"Who is the target you were talking about a moment ago?" She changed the topic, wanting to avoid the thought of any harm coming to her. If she was right about the wooden structure she was sitting on being some sort of inhumane torture device, she didn't want to think about the horrific things that could be done to her.

"Oh? You heard that? It's not polite to eavesdrop, how rude. Were you ever taught manners?" He moved around to the other side of the chair. His movements resembled a hungry vulture circling it's prey. Each and every movement he made were carefully designed to let her know exactly where he was, but on the contrary be unaware of his location all at the same time. Mind games we're his favourite. "You know very well who the target is. You additionally happen to appear very close, too. You're perfect for us to use and exploit. So," He ripped the blindfold from her eyes, the light making her vision slightly blurry as tears began to prick up, "please, thrash about and scream in horrific agony. Show me those beautiful eyes drenched in despair! Watch as I record you shrieking in pain. I want to see tears, honey. _Real ones._ I'm going to break you _both._ " His voice grew harsher and colder with every single word, embedding themselves into the girl's mind. He could see the terror in her eyes, wide with antipathy as he watched her shake and tremble. He pulled out a remote control from his pocket, along with a familiar phone. Her phone. Smiling widely and opening the device's camera, her captor flicked a red switch on the mysterious device. Her eyes held a lamentable gleam which begged him to stop, however it wasn't like anything she did mattered to him at the end of the day.

The female couldn't reply after that, as volt after volt ripped through her entire being, frail body convulsing frantically as the violent electrical current pulsed through her. Her limbs strained involuntarily against her tight restraints as the scent of burning flesh filled the room, the victim being cooked by the electricity. And all she could do was scream and scream as tears rolled down her face. The only sounds she could hear from the other party, who was filming her being fried with her own phone, were smug cackles. She was powerless. She recognised the face of the man torturing her the moment he had removed the blindfold, and now she could only panic in her mind as she clung on desperately to life. She couldn't die yet. _Please, not yet._ She had to protect him! The poor girl was a pathetically horrific sight to see at that moment. She prayed wholeheartedly that no one would have to suffer, watching her like this.

Through heartbreaking agonised whines and bellowing yawps drenched in distressed anguish, she managed to allow three whimpered words to escape her lips. "R-... Ru- n Shui-... AAH- Shuichi! P-Please- NGH-"

-

The window at the foot of Shuichi's bed slowly opened as a figure in white plopped through the frame onto the springy indigo bed, breaking his fall - which, for the record, definitely wasn't elegant. His movements hazardously cautious so he didn't frighten the sleeping boy, he pulled himself up from his uncomfortable position and sat on his bed cross legged. This was the first time he had seen the detective's room. It was smaller than he had expected, which was interesting in its own strange way. On his right was a small desk with a laptop upon it and pads of paper with handwriting scribbled all over them. He couldn't see what he had written, but he was too lazy to go and check. Anyway, he'd probably have the police called on him if Shuichi woke up whilst he was snooping around. The authority would hate him and feel unsafe in his own home, the thief didn't want that. No matter how much he wanted to explore the rest of his apartment, for now it was out of the question. A pity. He turned his attention back to the sleeping sleuth. His arch enemy looked peaceful when he was sleeping. He was quiet and not much of a heavy breather at all. The criminal found himself smiling at Shuichi's sleeping form. Careful to avoid touching Shuichi's legs, unaware of which one he had hurt, he straddled the dark haired boy's hips and leant down to his face, their noses nearly touching. " _Wakey wakey sleepy head._ " He cooed softly, like a parent playing with a baby.

Shuichi opened his eyes a crack unaware of the reason he had been woken. As his vision cleared from its blurry state he immediately yelled in a fright as the thief, who had been the first thing he saw when he woke up, snapped backwards defensively. He wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not, but either way, the thief being in his room was not a good indication. Maybe... If he closed his eyes again, his eyelids once more growing heavy, he would leave him alone...

"Are you kidding me right now! Don't ignore me! No one ever ignores me. Wake! Up!" The criminal grabbed Shuichi by the shirt and shook him lightly, but handled him roughly enough to wake him up properly. If the investigator went back to sleep for a second time, he'd just have to keep shaking him until he kept his golden eyes open.

"I'm up, I'm up." He eyed up the figure sitting on his stomach, his vision still partially hazy due to having just woken up from his slumber. "Ngh... Is that really you?"

He scoffed. "Nee-heehee! _Obviously_! Who else would it be? For a detective you can be _really dumb._ " He rested his hands on Shuichi's chest as he shifted his weight to sit more comfortably on the bony boy beneath him.

"O-Okay. Right. Well, first things first... Could you please get off of me? You're not exactly making it easy for me to breathe." He raised an eyebrow at the felon, not in the mood to argue or fight with him. He just wanted him to leave; he'd done enough damage already.

"Yup! At your service! I can do that!" The purple haired imp scuttled back to the foot of the bed, avoiding touching Shuichi's legs again. "Is that all?" He tilted his head to the side, a wide smile on his face.

"No. Why are you here? What the hell are you doing in my room?" Shuichi looked nothing less than unimpressed, not too scared due to still half believing that he was just dreaming. If he could bore the thief with his unwanted reactions, maybe he'd leave.

"Woah - one question at a time, please. I know you're so eager to talk to a magnificent supreme leader such as myself but please, _calm down_." He dramatically put his hand to his heart, speaking in a smug sarcastic tone. "I came here to talk to you, that's all." He crept back up to Shuichi's face, their mouths dangerously close. Shuichi registered all his movements immediately, eyes flicking between his masked face and gloved hands. He had learned to be more attentive whenever the menace was around him, the boy was unpredictable - he could do anything. The thief dropped his voice to that same seductive whisper he'd used countless times before. "Or maybe I'm just lying again. Maybe I only came here to watch your beautiful sleeping face..."

Shuichi leaned further back into his pillow, if that was even possible. "It was stupid of you to come. What if someone hears you and calls the police? Plus, I could easily unmask you right now. To take such a risk, whatever you wanted to talk about must be serious. Couldn't you have waited until the next time we'd met?" He rolled his eyes, clearly uninterested in whatever the other boy had to say.

The smaller boy sat back again on the detective's stomach. He wasn't heavy in the slightest so the dark haired boy wasn't being hurt, luckily. "Actually," He smirked, dismissively flipping his hand outwardly, "it's not that important. I just wanted to talk without the whole 'catch me if you can' thing."

Shuichi didn't quite understand why he would risk having his identity discovered if whatever he wanted to discuss wasn't of any importance. "I-I see..." He didn't see. Not at all. "How can you trust that I won't call for help or attack you?"

As if to make a point he pressed his hands onto Shuichi's arms, which were under his dark blue duvet. He wouldn't be able to move them now, especially with the imp pressing down on them with the majority of his weight. "Now, now. There's no need to be so paranoid. Why would I pull anything on my beloved detective when he's in such a fragile state? There's no fun in hurting someone who's already injured. And I trust that you won't call for help unless you want those embarrassing photographs released. You know... The ones with you crying at the mercy of yours truly. So, don't make any stupid moves." Once again, he leaned down to the detective's face towards his ear, his voice becoming a murmur. "This encounter will be our little secret, okay?" He moved one of the hands holding his arms away and put it to the detective's chest instead, clawing at it lightly earning an uncomfortable blush and a small distressed yet sharp inhale from the boy beneath him. Throughout his stroking, he made sure to pop a few of his shirt buttons open. His silky gloved hand traced lines and intricate patterns across the exposed skin. "Nee-heehee... If you _did_ tell someone about this I _might_ just have to dispose of you..." He flicked his wrist subtly and the short, cold blade of a pocket knife fell out of his sleeve onto the other boy's chest, the handle in his hand as he used his remaining fingertips to resume his stroking. Slowly, his fingers and the blade moved up to his throat. Not once did the dictator's smile falter.

Shuichi flinched away from his touching, more scared of the more than obvious threat against his life than anything. "Okay. I won't tell anyone that you came here tonight, alright? N-Now could you p-please get off of me? I won't try anything funny. We're just going to talk right?"

The thief happily hopped backwards onto the foot of the bed once again, tucking his weapon back into the interior pocket in his sleeve. "Just talking!" He looked down towards the duvet covering Shuichi's raised leg. "Does it hurt?"

"Yes. A lot. I can't walk. I only have you to thank for that." The detective responded, deadpan. His leg had begun to hurt again due to the movement of the criminal shuffling about on the sheets, though the pain was dull and not causing him too much discomfort at the moment.

"Oh... I didn't mean to hurt you _this_ badly. I know it's only sprained... But still... I think I may have gotten carried away. A little bit. I was just following instructions." The menace stated, sounding almost uncharacteristically serious and a hint of guilt could be heard hiding in his voice. Fake or not, Shuichi couldn't tell.

Shuichi couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was the thief actually telling the truth? The whole, honest truth, not half-truths which he loved to splutter. "Why are you telling me this? I could have been lying to you when I said I wouldn't unmask you right now. It would make my life easier not having you around messing with me."

The violet eyed boy laughed triumphantly. "Nishishi! It's because I know you won't."

"Hm? Why not?"

"Because I know how much you love solving puzzles and mysteries! You're a detective! That's what you do! And, by the way, I know how much you like our little game of cat and mouse. Isn't it exhilarating?" His voice became increasingly irritated yet somehow remained merry and bright, however it would have been more convincing if his cheerfully smug face matched the frustrated tone of his voice.

"I'm going to be completely honest here..." The instigator began, taking a deep breath. "You're not that bad. You make me mad and uncomfortable, sure, but I don't actually hate you. I think your calling cards are very clever. I... I do enjoy solving them."

Shuichi may have seen the other boy smile for half a second - a genuine smile, not one of his usual forced smiles - though it came and disappeared so quickly he barely had time to register it. He began to speak, mask covering the pink tints on his cheeks. "Nee-heehee! See! You _do_ enjoy our time together. You can't take that back now! Never - I've already heard it and I'm not going to forget it!" His playful voice sang out joyfully, both boys beaming from ear to ear. It was then their eyes met and their smiles faded instantaneously out of embarrassment. It was strange for the thief to share his true feelings; he felt vulnerable without his protective walls of lies, but he wanted to get to know the detective better. In a strange way, he felt safe with the authority, though his identity could easily be revealed by him in a matter of seconds. The only person he'd ever show his true feelings to was Shade, who had been his best friend for the majority of his whole life. Shade knew the boy inside out, just like you knew the back of your own hand. He could tell what the boy was thinking with a mere glance at him and he could pick out all of his lies apart from the occasional truths he said. Shade was the only person the thief could be himself around, and vice versa. He yearned to someday be this way with the detective, who he believed was trustworthy enough, though that was just another of his silly fantasies.

"I may not be able to take it back now, but I certainly will be able to regret saying it, so let's hope it doesn't come down to that." Shuichi smiled at the boy sitting at the end of his bed. It was weird how he hadn't caused a huge scene when he had been woken up by the criminal straddling him, face barely inches away from his own. It was even weirder that he had allowed the boy to sit on the end of his bed, like an obedient dog rather than sending him away. However, the weirdest thing of all is that Shuichi had allowed himself to open up to the thief, fully aware that every word coming out of the other boy's mouth could be another cruel lie. He was too tired to care right now. It was God knows how many hours into the night and he didn't have the energy to check. He fidgeted to get comfortable, accidentally moving his injured leg and letting a strangled cry be torn from his throat.

"Hey? Are you okay? Come here, let me help you." Before Shuichi could protest, the covers had been pulled from his body. The thief reached into a pocket on the inside of his suit and fished out a roll of bandages. He, as gently as he could, rolled up the other boy's trouser leg and peered back up at his anxious face. "Can I?"

Shuichi nodded hesitantly, wincing at the contact between his leg and the silky fingers of the shorter male. "S-Sure... Just be careful. It really hurts. For someone so small, you really can deal some damage, you know? It's almost scary."

The purple haired demon chuckled lightly. "Yeah. I know self defense, though I don't really use what I've learnt properly. It's more fun to do things my own way. Oops--sorry if I hurt you just then." He was wrapping the bandages tightly around the taller boy's leg, coiling them in such a way it minimised the pain. The thief was oddly good at this - it appeared that he was used to taking care of people who had been injured. He finished tying the fabric around his leg and pulled his trouser leg back down, then tucked him in again. "Here. How does that feel?"

Shuichi fidgeted his leg a tiny bit, relieved to find no daggers shooting through him in a malicious assault. He smiled with satisfaction. Now he could be comfortable. "I-It doesn't hurt as much anymore. Th-Thank you."

He scoffed in response. "Don't mention it. It wasn't that much of a kind gesture anyway - it's just that broken toys aren't that fun. Broken toys just fall apart and they're useless; you can't play with them anymore and you have to throw them away. It has nothing to do with wanting to be nice to you. We're enemies, remember?"

Shuichi raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, right. We don't seem much like enemies right now, and I don't believe you see me as a toy right now either."

The thief huffed aggravatedly, crossing his arms tightly with a pout. "I was really cruel tonight. I may be an evil genius aiming to dominate the world, but I, too, have morals. I was just very into the role of nefarious villain that I went to extreme measures to accomplish my mission." _Once a liar, always a liar._ It was easy to disguise the heart wrenching guilt which suffocated his entire being as something completely different. Lies were everything to him. His protection. His stability. His defense mechanism shielding him from the harsh reality of the real world. And though he loved to lie, he truly did - lying came like breathing to him, he couldn't stop the strange urge inside him telling him to be honest with this detective. And it hurt. "And the _only_ real reason why I'm here is to analyse you because I find you interesting. I have _plenty_ of people who would love for me to be their arch enemy - they're practically queuing up! So please, don't let me find out that you're actually really, really boring. That would be so lame!"

"Don't be ridiculous." He glared at the thief, not really sure where the lies were anymore, though he certainly could pick up on his vague sarcasm. "No one wants to be your arch enemy, not even I did. It just turned out that way. I'm the only person who is willing to play this 'game' with you, so don't underestimate me. You're lucky that tonight I've agreed to not unmask you, but next time is a different story." He threatened, however his voice was nowhere near dark or malicious. It was just playful, truthful banter.

The thief opened his mouth to reply, clever retorts racing through his mind, but he closed it again as if in thought. A few seconds later he opened his mouth again, his face brightening up dramatically. "Oh yeah! I almost forgot! I brought you a gift!"

Shuichi's stomach began to twist knots in itself. A gift? He was probably just going to take Shuichi's Iife right there. "W-What do you mean by gift?" His anxiety could be heard in his slightly shaky voice.

"As much as I love seeing you terrified, can you please chill out? We both already agreed to not pull anything tonight. That includes pulling you." His smile twisted into quite an unsure one before turning back into a forced proud grin. He hoped the detective didn't notice. That last bit wasn't supposed to come out, he had agreed with himself privately that he wouldn't flirt too much tonight - even though it only was a joke - seeing as it made the detective less vocal. It wasn't a heist which required his full attention and speed to complete because it was on a time limit, so he wanted to keep the taller boy as talkative as possible - he had grown to know how shy he was.

Shuichi shot up in bed, now sitting up, and shuffled backwards towards the headboard. "Excuse me- w- _what?_ " He could never get used to the eccentric things that spewed from the other boy's mouth. It worried him, really. And now he was talking about _sex_ with Shuichi?

Going along with his mistake as if it were intentional, the imp smirked. "Unless that's what you really want. Your face is turning very red. Could it be you fantasise about us? That's so exciting! Do you dream about yanking my hair back fiercely as you drill my throat relentlessly with your-"

"STOP! That's enough. You don't have to force yourself to say these things. Just admit that something accidentally slipped out and move on instead of making it worse..." Could Shuichi really have just read the villain? He guessed that perhaps he may have been right on the money as the other boy scooted back further towards the end of the bed silently. "Ah, I didn't mean to upset you."

 _Amazing, he noticed_. "I'm not upset! Just surprised that you had the audacity to do something as bold as speak back to me." He was upset and there was no hiding that. He was shocked that he had been read as easily as he could read the detective. Were they really that similar after all? No, he couldn't be. That was impossible. A mere detective was no match for a _God_. He was _so much better than Shuichi Saihara_. He decided to change the subject back to it's original topic. His attitude switched completely, it was almost scary. "Okie dokie! Gift time! Close your eyes and hold out your hands!"

Shuichi, trembling slightly out of both fear and anticipation, held his hands out in front of him, cupping them together. He shut his eyes tightly. "O-Okay."

The thief reached into his jacket and pulled out a flattened black cap which he held upside down to avoid spilling out the contents. He plumped the cap back into shape neatly and placed it in the detective's waiting hands. "Put it on the floor or something. And don't look at the important thingy inside until you're able to walk!"

Shuichi opened his eyes, not understanding the importance of the instructions he'd been given. He looked down at his hands and gasped. "My hat? But why? I recall you saying I looked better without it." Shuichi had looked _at_ his hat, but he hadn't yet looked _inside_ of it.

"You're going to have to wait and see why." The grin on his face could be heard in his tone. "And I _do_ think you look better without your hat. Your hat allows you to hide your pretty face, my beloved detective. I don't like it."

The detective leaned over the edge of his bed, plopping his hat down on the floor as he had been instructed to do so. "I don't care if you don't like it. I always wear it. This hat is really important to me."

"Why's that? It's just a hat. I don't see anything so amazing or special about it."

"It's personal." Shuichi looked down, a slight expression of anguish on his face as he appeared to be remembering something which caused him a lot of pain. The thief couldn't help but pick it up and twinges of guilt stabbed through him knowing he'd just unintentionally initiated a world war in the dark haired boy's head.

"Then I won't make you talk about it." But now he was curious. This made the detective even more mysterious. Did he have a tragic backstory like every single protagonist in existence? Did he run away from home with the hat as his only companion as they journeyed out to seek comfort in a new home whilst struggling for survival on the streets together? Did someone he loved give him the hat before leaving him? There were so many fun possibilities!

Shuichi seemed to become less tense at that. "Th-Thanks..."

The thief shuffled closer to Shuichi again, a wide smile on his face. "Hey, Shuichi. Because you've been such a _good boy_ for me tonight, I'll answer one of your questions honestly. Unless it's too personal, of course. Use it wisely - I don't think you'd want to put this golden opportunity to waste!"

Shuichi gasped silently. _A question?_ He could ask anything he wanted to know about his nemesis and receive an honest answer? He had begun to think the thief's break in was just pointless and he was using it to his advantage to tease him, but now he was being offered _this_. Was the thief giving him clues pointing towards his hidden identity? If so, this was just another part of his guessing game. Questions whizzed through his head. _Who are you? Who do you work for? What are you planning?_ He couldn't ask any of those though, he knew he'd receive a sarcastic answer and he would never get another chance to ask. He took a deep breath, hoping he'd made the right choice, and began to speak. "Why do you commit the crimes? And, wait a moment before you answer - I'm not finished, I don't want an answer like 'for fun'. I want to know how you benefit from it, if that's not too much to ask." He sealed his lips tightly, his mouth forming a straight line after responding, unsure if he had asked the wrong thing. He internally pleaded that this was not the case.

The thief furrowed his brows and put a hand to his chin as if considering answering or not. "Hmm... I guess I would be able to answer that. So here we go! The organisation I lead has a big plan! A ginormous one that'll take the world by storm! There won't be a single woman, man or child who doesn't know our names after we change the world! Nishishi~ This world is mine! You may not believe it now, but in a matter of months the project will be completed and you'll see _exactly_ what I mean. I commit the crimes for other reasons too, though they're more stuff I enjoy on the side. For example, fame! I have so many fangirls who adore me because I'm so _sexy_ and _mysterious_. Who _wouldn't_ want a piece of this hot stuff? And the power! The thrill and excitement! How couldn't I benefit from committing my crimes? I get all this amazing stuff, though I thought that it may already be obvious."

What on earth was he babbling on about world domination for? He really was like a child. No one could take over the world, that was just a thing villains enjoyed to rambled on about in superhero movies to make the plot interesting enough for the film to be worth watching, though the ending is always so cliché. The delinquent on his bed was just one small boy. One small boy who was hiding frighteningly ingenious psyche behind an unfaltering mask of false smiles, manipulation and convincing lies. He suddenly became unsure of his own judgements. He didn't know what intellectual capabilities the boy possessed, he had only learned so much in the time they had spent together. "That's impossible. World domination is paradoxical. You'd never be able to-"

"But I would."

"H-Huh?"

His voice dropped into a baleful whisper. "As we speak, I have people working on the project. We already have the amethyst and the camera. We also have the prototype robot from Idabashi, along with the blueprints, and all that pretty jewellery. We only need a few more things before we're done. I'll make sure to show you exactly what we're making first once it's complete! You can even be the first victim of you'd be willing enough to hand yourself over to me." He sneered smugly with astronomical complacency in such a way that Shuichi wasn't sure what was the truth and what was a lie anymore.

"Y-You're crazy..." The golden eyed boy responded feebly, staring into the intense violet eyes piercing through him.

"Nee-heehee! _Insane_ , baby!" He crawled closer to the taller boy tracing a fingertip along his jawline. "There is one more reason why I commit my crimes. It's very beneficial."

He flinched away from the criminal's touch, pressing his head further back into the headboard. "A-And what's that?"

Shuichi immediately regret asking as the smaller boy climbed into his lap, hands gripping his shoulders and looking down at him hungrily like a famished animal ready to ravish him. He let out a soft giggle. "That's easy... I get to _play with you, Mr Detective._ " He adored the way the face of the boy beneath him reddened and heated up from both his teasing and the uncomfortable contact. He closed his eyes slowly and brought his face closer to the wide eyed detective's. Shuichi shuddered, heart pounding wildly, as he watched his enemy _almost_ bring their lips together, too shocked and afraid to resist against him. _Keyword: **almost.**_ The purple haired boy instantaneously sprung back with an amused giggle. "Just kidding! Did I get ya?" He grinned from ear to ear, pleased with himself.

The boy pinned against the headboard let out a deep breath he had been holding whilst he was paralysed with fear. He was grateful that he hadn't been kissed - he wouldn't know what to do, in all honesty. He wouldn't say he was _disappointed_ that the thief didn't follow through with his actions, he was more just despondent about the situation. He ignored the question he had just been asked - though it was clearly rhetorical - and decided to respond with another question. "What organisation do you work for?"

The villain pulled an expression which read as 'are you seriously kidding me right now?' as he sighed dejectedly. "I said only ONE question. Man, you're forgetful..." He looked to the side, towards Shuichi's tidy bedroom floor and focused on one spot for a second before turning back towards the tired detective. " _Unless..._ You want to join us?"

Dumbfounded was the only word that could explain how the golden eyed boy felt right now. He blinked slowly trying to process whether he had heard the smaller boy correctly or had just heard wrong. Mistakes happen. "Join? You? Uh... I'm quite content where I am in life currently so unfortunately I'll have to pass..."

The masked boy tipped his head to the side. "Why'd you turn me down? If you joined us you'd have all the girls, money and sex you could ever dream of, right when you wanted it!"

"Once again, I'm going to have to pass on that." Shuichi nervously stroked a hand through his hair, tucking it behind his ear.

The thief groaned, disgruntled. "Fine, fine. But don't come crying to me when you regret your decision!" He pouted childishly.

"I'm sure I won't, but I'll keep that in mind. Just in case." Shuichi smiled, retaliating playfully. To his dismay, he found himself getting used to the boy's strange personality changes which flicked from one emotion to another in the blink of an eye. He was unpredictable, and it kept Shuichi alert. Shuichi, as amazing the detective was, was terrible at picking up on social cues - at least he was giving him some practice.

"Good! Well then, I've gotta go." He climbed onto the windowsill and opened the window before hanging his legs out of it, swinging them in the night wind. "I'll look forward until the next time we meet, however, I won't be so kind to you in the future, so you'd better not expect a hug and a catch up over a cup of coffee. Tonight was a super special limited time offer!"

Shuichi didn't want the thief to go. No matter how tired he was because of the boy in front of him, he didn't want him to leave. He still had so much to ask and learn about him so that he had enough evidence to guess who could be the phantom thief. "H-Hold on! You can't leave yet!"

He spun his head around as his kicked his legs out of the window like a child. "And? Why not? There's not a law against it."

"Y-Yes I know but-"

"But what? If you give me a good enough reason I'll stay a little longer." He said flatly, wondering what the detective was planning. What trick was he going to pull?

"W-Well you see... I... U-Um..." Did Shuichi even have a proper reason to force him to stay?

"Nishishi! Could it be that you've finally fallen for me?"

"N-No! Of course not!" Shuichi responded quickly, almost too quickly.

"Then you obviously have nothing to say that's worth my time anymore. Go back to sleep. I'll lock the window from the outside. Sweet dreams." Before Shuichi could reply, the thief jumped out of the window, disappearing from view.

Shuichi would have crawled the the end of his bed to look out of the window to see if he was able to spot where he could have gone, but his leg prevented any movements of the sort. It was frustrating but Shuichi would thank his leg for that one day. He laid back down in his bed, the warmth he had been missing enveloping him. Words couldn't describe how heavy his eyelids were as he fought against the tiredness washing over him. His fighting was in vain as Shuichi, for the second time that night, drifted off to sleep thinking about the mysterious enigma.

-

Clinging to the side of the building, invisible climbing chalk on his gloved fingers, the criminal scaled down the brick wall careful to avoid accidentally kicking anyone's windows. The last thing he needed right now was to be caught half-way up a fifteen storey building all because he needed his beloved detective to be tricked into going along with the next phase of the plan. It was a matter of mere minutes before the villain hopped off of the wall, bending his knees as he landed on the grass. He didn't have his cloak on at the moment, having thrown it on the floor of the DICEMOBILE and now he was beginning to regret it. He was out in the open for all to see as he dashed down the street to look for the vehicle that had followed the limousine here. His fellow team mates often left him to make his own way back to HQ if he had taken too long to return, not wanting themselves caught by the police. Unfortunately, he was starting to think that they had abandoned him here too. His sprint slowed to a walk as he approached the alleyway he had been dropped off from. _Empty. Crap._ He rolled up his left sleeve revealing a black watch which seemed ordinary at first glance. The more you looked at it, the more you noticed about the odd trinket. Small buttons were lined around the outside of the frame in the case - three on each side. A small green screen replaced the glass face of the watch, a small microphone and speaker located at the bottom of it, at the top was a tiny camera. Bringing the watch close to his face he clicked the two bottom buttons either side of the watch and waited impatiently, his foot tapping on the floor. Seconds later, a black and white hologram shone like a ghost from the screen. The projection showed Pigtails in the back of their vehicle, Aergia and Vigour were turned around in the front seats so they were looking back at their boss' unamused face.

"Where the hell are you guys? I'm out in the open and anyone could see me!" He frowned crossly blunt his right hand into a fist.

The three shared a look that said 'uh oh' before Pigtails turned back to face the angry leader. "We're in the next alleyway over! It was just a prank! We're sorry!"

The leader of the organisation sighed frustratedly. Yes, he loved pranks. Yes, he loved pulling them. But he _hated_ it when they were pulled on _him_. It just wasn't fair! "Well come and get me!"

The trio saluted. "Yes sir!" The hologram disappeared into thin air as the screen went dark once more.

He pulled his sleeve back down and hugged himself as he waited for his ride. Though the day had been undeniably hot, it had grown rather chilly at this point and without his cape to wrap around him like a protective blanket - or a shield defending him from the cruelty of the real world - he was forced to stand there in the freezing wind. He looked up at the cloudy pitch black sky, a crescent moon flashing him a kind smile. "Mm... Looks like it's going to rain pretty soon... That's nice." He mumbled to himself, rubbing his hands up and down his upper arms to generate heat. He liked the rain. He enjoyed listening to it pittering and pattering off of the garage roof late at night when he snuck swiftly up the ladder leading to the manhole covering the entrance to headquarters. He'd usually bring a blanket with him and snuggle up behind the DICEMOBILE where no one could see him, and listen to the wrath of the angry God above him. Listening to the rain made him sleepy, and there had been more than one occasion where he had been caught by Shade - who was the _only_ person permitted to leave HQ without seeking permission from the leader (or himself, quite obviously) - sleeping in half of an abandoned building, the roof barely in tact, behind a van where anything could happen to him. Shade couldn't get mad at him though, whilst he himself had matured into a fine adult, he understood that the leader had lacked a fulfilling, happy childhood, though he, his little sister, and everyone else were no strangers to the same experience. The boss just wanted to enjoy life to the best ability he could. That's why the entirety of D.I.C.E did what they did. It wasn't just for their purple haired menace they cherished so much - it was for all of them. The rain was a constant reminder of the peace and serenity they aimed for. They were the thief's family; the pouring rain of the upcoming thunderstorm would protect them all.

 _ **BEEP BEEP!**_ He was snapped out of his sombre reminiscence by Vigour honking the van's horn at him. He walked forwards, still clutching his arms tightly and climbed into the back of the van with Pigtails. He sat down next to her silently and scooped his cloak off of the ground, throwing it around him. "Took you long enough." He removed the clip from his hair and shook his hair free - this was the longest he'd ever had to keep his hair back. He sighed with relief, also taking his leather peaked hat off and placing it on his lap, followed by his mask.

Aergia groaned irritatedly. "Oh, _lighten up_! You're acting like a little kid. It's just a prank, bro! We wouldn't just leave you there, yanno? You can be such a brainless moron sometimes. It's fuckin' stupid." Her potty mouth never failed to make everyone who heard her uncomfortable. It was mainly due to how sweet and pure she looked being so childlike and small - however she was anything but sweet or pure.

The short boy rolled his eyes. "I don't _care_ about the prank. It was too dumb for me to get mad about anyway." He was nervous. If they couldn't see through that simple lie then he'd be good to go with following through with his sly plan. But this wasn't the only thing he was thinking about.

Vigour had picked up the slightest hint of gloom-ridden engrossment in his whiny tone. "Is there something on your mind? You can talk about it if you want. We're all friends here."

"Family."

"What?" He didn't really know what his boss had meant by that until he thought about his own previous statement for a moment.

"We're all family here right?" He sounded unusually serious. His team mates knew that this meant whatever it was, it had been plaguing him like a disease, eating away at his mind.

"Of course we are! We've been family even before we founded D.I.C.E all those years ago. Why? What's troubling you, buddy?" Pigtails wanted to give the smaller boy a hug, but she knew by now that he would flinch and push her away. He didn't like physical contact unless he was the one initiating it, he had put his complete trust in the other person, or he had asked for it. There were rarely any exceptions. Everyone was on edge as they waited for his response.

"Do you swear on your lives that you'll never leave me? No matter what happens? Will you stand by my side for the rest of our lives?" The questions had taken the group aback. It wasn't like their leader to think about such things. In all honesty, it made them quite suspicious of the boy who was acting peculiarly anxious.

"We swear on our lives." They spoke in unison, right arms crossing over their chests in a pledge which meant _everything_ and yet meant nothing at all.

"Thank you." Maybe it would turn out alright after all. He'd take his chances. If you never took risks, you'd never get anywhere in life, after all.

"Mr Boss man? You were fine before you visited that bastard detective. The fuck did he do to you to get you like _this_? Do I need to hurt him?" Aergia threatened as she cracked her knuckles one hand at a time. She cared about everyone in D.I.C.E dearly, so she had made it her number one rule to make sure no one ever upset her friends. It didn't matter who they were. No one was allowed to disrespect the kind people who had saved her.

"Aergia sweetie, I appreciate the concern but that won't be necessary. He didn't do anything. I just happened to think about the past, that's all." His face twisted into a horribly feigned smile. "And it was really fun, believe it or not! Oh the nostalgia! I can't get enough of it nishishi!"

Vigour slammed his foot down on the accelerator to make it past some traffic lights that were about to turn red. "Stop thinking about the past, it's not going to do you any good. Focus on something else. Like the project. We've been needing to discuss it with you anyway."

Tipping his head back to rest against the back of the seat, the thief turned his head in Vigour's direction. _This was his chance!_ "Yeah, I know. I just completed the next phase of the plan when I visited the pesky detective that keeps holding us up." He wasn't pesky. He was _fun_ , and _interesting_ , and _kind._

Pigtails gasped as if she had just heard the most obscene thing ever come out of the smaller boy's mouth. "You don't mean to say that-- Oh my god, _no you did not!_ “ She covered her mouth, unsure if the plan would go down well.

"Hm? Why do you think I'm lying right now? I took the fake card in for him. The real one is at the scene of the last crime, I tucked it into the top of red head's dress when I stole her camera and threw her off the stage. That was a perfect diversion, no? It's Mahiru Koizumi's choice if she wants to hand over the card to the police to be investigated, though I doubt she'd want to. It would be very humiliating for her, nee-heehee! I injured poor little Sherlock Holmes as promised, and the fool is convinced that I didn't mean it. We're on good terms, he thinks. He won't be able to walk or get around easily for a few days, so we've gotta move fast." A devious leer was plastered across the demon's face. His monologue was drenched in spiteful malice and animosity, all four team members grinning brightly at one another. Their leader was a genius!

"Hell fucking yeah! This is the shit I'm talking about!"

"Brother is going to be so proud! We can swiftly move onto the next stage of the plan if this all turns out well!"

"I'm glad to hear that you're always scheming and thinking about every single outcome and possibility, reworking your plans until they're absolutely perfect, but I have a question."

The celebrating girls' smiles were wiped from their faces, along with their boss' as he sat up straight. "Is there something you don't agree with regarding my ingenious plan?" He wondered about where he could've gone wrong. He had spent hours formulating his scheme to the highest accuracy he could. He'd even had Minerva dedicate some of her time to researching various things for him, which she wasn't too pleased about but allowed him get on with his work anyway.

"Kind of. What happens if Mahiru cuts the card and _then_ hands it to the authorities? Wouldn't the whole plan come tumbling down at that point?" Vigour seemed truly interested in his boss' way of thinking. Not that he'd ever understand his complicated thought process anyway.

The purple haired boy bit his lip before responding. He had thought this too, but he couldn't think of any way of preventing it. He had asked Gadget to make the card virtually indestructible but due to the project requiring a vast amount of funds, he couldn't spare any money to make upgrades to the card. It was too much of a waste on one measly card anyway. "I'm aware there are a few flaws, however this was the only option that we benefitted the most from. It has a 50/50 chance of succeeding, which means it has an equal chance of failing. On the contrary, if everything works out the way I'm incredibly confident it will, we won't have to worry about the progress on the project being slowed down. We'll have completed it before we know it! Then we'll be practically unstoppable! Nishishi!"

"Reckless as always, huh? You really do never change. Not like that's a problem, as long as brother agrees with it." Pigtails beamed softly.

"But he's still fuckin' awesome! DICE is the best!" Aergia's high angelic voice sang as she punched the air.

The leader smiled to himself. If he had to betray the trust of the detective he wanted to befriend so much just to make his friends happy, he would. If he had to slightly betray his own friends' trust to get his own way, then he would. The plan was in action. There was nothing he could do about it now. Anyways, Shuichi was just a dumb detective who got in his way all the time, if he just got rid of the nuisance from the picture then everything would work themselves out perfectly fine. Plus, if he wanted that fun he craved so much, he could have it with all the other members of DICE - maybe he'd even have fortnightly compulsory game nights! That would snazz things up quite a bit.

Although... Was he being truthful about the intentions of his current scheme? He had planned for the scheme to play out the opposite way everyone else believed he meant. Not everything he said was a lie despite this fact, however. The project would be finished faster than before; he could use the victims to his heart's content. The results would also be beneficial - for him, mostly, at least. And if the scheme backfired and went about the way that Pigtails, Vigour and Aergia had imagined, that would be perfectly fine too. Everything had been carefully planned with utmost precision. It didn't matter which way his scheme went; the desired outcome would remain the same with every possible end result. ' _If everything works out the way I'm incredibly confident it will_ ' then he would have everyone right where he wanted them. Mahiru Koizumi. The authorities. His beloved Shuichi Saihara. DICE.

Cunning as the demon was, chicanery of all sorts went on behind closed doors where he couldn't see it. He wanted to play deceitful, huh? _**Ten can play at that game.**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this sucked lmao I'm not that great at writing or describing scenes with dialogue,, but I still hoped you enjoyed!!  
> Next part up next week <3


	7. Lights, Camera, Deception

She sobbed loudly into her pillow, her light straight locks of hair sticking to her tear stricken, sweat covered face as she tossed and turned in her bed. "P-Please... I... I want you to l-love me..." She just wanted her sweetheart to pay attention to her the way she desired him to. "I-I would do anyth-thing to make y-you fall for me... I need you..." To say she liked him was an understatement. She adored him. She _worshipped_ him. She was hopelessly in love with the damn boy. More tears came rolling down her cheeks, her mascara being carried with it staining her bedsheets. Not that it was noticeable though, this was routine for her. Crying over a boy, how pitiful. Everyone she knew would be ashamed. Pathetic. "I-I can't help this overwhelming f-feeling I have for y-you..." Her meek voice became a lot whisper, her tears coming to a halt. " _Despair._ " Though this wouldn't last too long; her devious plan was in action. That _piece of shit_ wouldn't be able to be near him for much longer. She'd make sure of it. After all, she had her darling wrapped tightly around her little finger. Wiping the tears from her face, she let out a sadistic laugh. All fourteen of them were her worthless chess pieces. She moved them as she pleased, whether they knew it or not, and they weren't able to do anything about it now. It was far too late. She had them trapped. _They were all just simple pawns in her master scheme._

-

Shuichi woke up to the sound of birds chirping cheerfully and cars rushing past outside his gloomy, dull apartment, the cool sun peering through his monotonous grey curtains. He slowly opened his eyes using one hand to shield his golden orbs from the blazing ball of gas and sat up. For a moment he had forgotten about the thief's visit, until he looked at his curtains. Sure, he left them slightly opened so the sun would wake him gently, but he would never leave them like this where his face would be practically burnt to a crisp. He had had a pleasant night with the criminal, talking in a friendly manner and learning more about the enigma than he physically imagined possible. Apart from the few occasional uncomfortable jokes where the smaller boy would climb into Shuichi's lap and bring their faces dangerously close together, the detective didn't think he was too bad. Maybe they'd end up being good friends after he captured him, unmasked him, sent him to jail and then waited for him to have completed his time there. He laughed softly to himself, that was a silly thought. Also very strange. Some may even say weird. He stretched his arms above his head earning a few loud yet satisfying cracks as he recapped the events of the previous night. He seemed trustworthy enough, if he ignored his extremely frequent lies (which he was sure he was beginning to be able to recognise at this point), and though he couldn't wrap his head around the unpredictable menace's thought process at all he still enjoyed his company. At some points, to clarify. He was still unsure of the mysterious man though. Something about not knowing what he would do next was exciting! _Gosh_ , the thief _really_ was rubbing off on him. He was beginning to sound like him. On the topic of the thief, he had bandaged up his leg for him so it was comfortable enough for him to sleep. He hadn't woken up once in agonising pain, so he really owed the masked figure for his help. Yeah, Shuichi thought to himself, _he's really not that bad at all_. Shuichi took in a deep breath and fidgeted his leg. Finding that the pain had been significantly reduced, he released the breath he had been holding and smiled. 

He carefully swung his legs off the side of the bed, not taking any chances if his leg should begin to act up again, and reached down to pick up the hat the imp had returned to him the night prior. The thief had told him to "Put it on the floor or something. And don't look at the important thingy inside until you're able to walk!" but why would that matter? The purple haired terror would never know, would he? The detective shrugged as he plucked the pair of items from inside the makeshift container. He dropped them onto his lap, watching the two small, rectangular pieces of pasteboard flutter into his lap. Shuichi picked up the larger piece of paper first, flipping the seemingly blank sheet over. His eyes darted across the humiliating sight before him. The thief had left a photograph of himself and Shuichi from the last heist on the other side. He scrutinized the little window, examining the scene searchingly for if the photograph contained a clue of some sort. The photograph portrayed Shuichi being head locked by the criminal who was flashing a proud toothy grin. The picture had been timed perfectly - it appeared that Shuichi was smiling (though rather awkwardly as if he were camera shy - and for the record, he was) as he was being head locked in front of his captor. It ultimately just looked like a friendly gesture between two close friends, ironically. Although, Shuichi would never stoop as low as to become close friends with a criminal. The detective had to admit, it wasn't the worst photo in the world. He actually rather liked it, especially since he had half befriended this mysterious man. On the white boarder beneath the bewildering scene, overly neat handwriting in an obnoxious blue caught the boy's eye. 

"Nishishi~ Does this count as food photography, my beloved? Because you're one mighty fine SNACC! Kidding! You're the whole three course meal baby! Shall you forever fix this romantic image in the film of your memory! xx" He read it slowly, smiling at the awful photography themed pickup lines and puns as he shook his head dismissively. The flirting still made him uncomfortable, of course, but now at least he was beginning to get used to it. Soon he'd maybe grow immune to the villain's teasing. Who knows? Only time would tell.

He placed the photograph carefully on his lap, cautious to not damage it, trading it with the other item. It was small and black, a familiar intricate pattern decorating the back of the card. He flipped it over, anticipating decoding the hint he expected to be left in the usual blindingly white, scrawny font as always. Something about it seemed _off_ today, however. He may have only just woken up a moment ago but he was definitely sure something was wrong. The cursive writing was definitely the same... So what was the problem? Perhaps Shuichi was just not used to reading such complex yet neat handwriting as soon as he had opened his eyes. Nothing that he could tell was out of the ordinary so he decided to drop the matter - reading the card was more important. He mumbled the words to himself, practically hearing the thief himself saying the words in his head.

" _Hello, reader! Looking for a clue?_  
_There are numerous identical pictures_  
_That all look like you!_  
_On another note, please reflect on the past._  
_Recollect the falsehood of the veracity."_

Strangely, the word 'reflect' had been underlined making the word stand boldly out among the others. Of all the calling cards so far, this one had to be the most peculiar. "Reflect? Like a mirror?" Shuichi said to no one in particular - he just enjoyed to voice his thoughts when he was alone. It cleared his head, which was already whirring with plenty of other questions and mysteries he wanted to uncover - he didn't need more stored in there. "It sounds like a mirror. 'Numerous identical pictures that all look like you', huh? But... There aren't any mirror shops around here... Maybe I'm wrong. It would be the quickest time I've decoded one of these hints before, after all." He chuckled uncomfortably to himself as he released a frustrated sigh. He did doubt his deductions but he couldn't think of anything else possible. Numerous identical pictures? Reflect on the past? What _did_ he have to reflect on? Maybe his uncle would have some ideas. He hadn't updated the older man on the status of his case so far - he hadn't made any remarkable progress after all. 

He picked his crutches up from the floor beside his bed and used them to drag himself across the room to his desk where his phone had been charging. He had both pieces of card in his right hand wedged neatly between his index and middle finger so they wouldn't get bent or crushed. When he reached his desk he opened one of the thin drawers from the right hand side of the wooden structure and pulled out a small ball of blu tack. Ripping off a sticky blob, he attached the photograph to the wall behind the desk, smiling out of satisfaction. Finally, he picked up his phone and dialed the number of his closest relative's agency. Knowing that the man arrived at work earlier than anyone else, he would be the first to pick up at the office. The phone was answered immediately.

"Hello. How can I help you?" A deep voice enquired. 

"Ah, it's just me. Don't worry."

"Oh! Shuichi, my boy! Glad to hear from you. I've been meaning to arrange a meeting with you and Kyoko, but I haven't gotten around to organizing it. My apologies."

"Actually... I was going to call about the same thing. Good timing, it seems." Shuichi chuckled.

"I'm proud that you're dedicating time to follow up the details of your case with a discussion. You're growing into a fine detective, Shu. Now, correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't there another robbery last night?"

Flashbacks of his failure played in his mind. He didn't want to get too upset over it, it was out of his control. He couldn't stop the thief. "Y-Yes there was... At the Pearlhall Manor. Mahiru Koizumi was hosting a private party for numerous famous personalities. The phantom thief managed to get in and attacked her, stealing the camera in the process. I gave chase but ended up injured, and he escaped just as the police were about to capture him." There was no way in hell that he would be giving any specific details of the night to his uncle of all people. If his former guardian heard about the criminal treating his nephew improperly, he'd take the case from him for sure. Keeping quiet would further spare him the embarrassment and humiliation.

"Kyoko had informed me that you had acquired the new calling card for that particular case. In the future please allow me to look at the card. We need to keep records of these things. I'm glad you were able to solve the clue, however. Keep up the good work." He tried to disguise his irritated tone with a more proud one, although Shuichi was able to see straight through his efforts.

"I keep the calling cards in my desk drawer. Do you want me to bring the newer one to the meeting so the agency can make records?" He would have brought up the card he had in his palm, but he didn't feel comfortable with that just yet - especially since it seemed so _wrong._

"That would be amazing, thank you. Speaking of Kyoko, have you seen her? I haven't heard from her since she popped into the office to meet with you. She usually calls me frequently to keep me updated, but last night she didn't. I'm going to need you to tell her about the meeting, she's not answering her phone. Busy girl must've been up all night investigating. She's likely sleeping in again. Wish her well for me!"

He was right. Kyoko hadn't shown up to the party last night, even though she had definitely been heading there. That was unusual of her. There was no need to investigate the museum again - Shuichi had the card slipped into his pocket so the thief didn't need to leave clues. For someone who had said that the hint on the card was obvious, you'd think that they'd want to prove it, right? Unless she had the wrong idea and went to the wrong place... It's the only plausible explanation, oh well. Shuichi was sure she was fine. She was an amazing detective, she probably had to check something different out and left Shuichi to the case. "No, now that you mention it I haven't seen her. She didn't show up the party despite sounding pretty confident about knowing where the heist was located."

"She does have lots of cases to work on at once. Perhaps she got caught up in investigating one of the others. The case with the two girls I've been telling you about has become more complex and it's requiring a lot of attention and quick action. She may be dealing with this." He noted, sounding as if he was clicking the pieces together in his brain.

"Maybe you're right. I'll try and check in on her. Thanks for your time." Shuichi went to hang up when his uncle called back to him.

"Wait! Don't forget this: the meeting will be held tomorrow morning at ten. Don't be late and don't forget to tell Kyoko. Have a good day, take care." The line went dead and the apprentice detective pulled his phone away from his ear. Phone calls were trouble. He'd much rather text than call, however unfortunately calling was much quicker. He had to prioritise things, sadly.

Shuichi put the card he was holding and his phone into his jacket pocket, which he hadn't taken off last night. He wasn't too bothered to change right now. His leg would hurt too much. It's not like Kaede would be seeing him today - he'd at least try to look presentable for her (to avoid her angry rants about basic hygiene and taking care of yourself for the billionth time). Now that he'd thought about it, Kaede hadn't called last night to check in. He hoped she was okay - maybe she was busy with her piano practise. It was believable enough. 

He staggered into his kitchen, still not used to using crutches and began to make toast. Plopping two slices of bread into the toaster and turning it on, he took his phone from his pocket and called Kyoko. The phone rang and rang endlessly, but the lilac haired girl didn't answer. He called again, and again but the results remained the same. Huffing impatiently, Shuichi decided to text her instead.

**Kyoko Kirigiri**

>Hello. We have a meeting tomorrow morning at 10am.  
Please make sure you get to bed on time so you don't miss it. _8:26_  
>Also, I have a new card.  
Don't bring it up at the meeting - this stays between us, OK? _8:27_

He quickly typed the messages, his fingers rapidly tapping the screen earning barely audible clicking noises from his nails occasionally touching the glass. He hoped she would answer soon. The next heist could be God knows when, and this card definitely had something wrong with it. He was sure she'd be able to help him. And that's when he remembered he could ask Kaede - she was always full of bright ideas. He called her, and just like with Kyoko there was no answer. Again. Nothing. He may have been reaching very far, but surely this couldn't be a coincidence? They were both usually up early and always kept their phones with them. He began to worry. What could be the problem?

-

They stared at the ringing phone on the table. The two of them. Captor and victim. Predator and prey. Player and game. She was aching. Everything was burning. Everything was numb. Stinging, and tingling, and numb. She had a splitting headache, her ringtone not helping her case at all. It wasn't an awful ringtone; it was actually rather peaceful and calm, like how she usually was. Howbeit, the noise was _drilling_ into her head, grinding her sanity to a mushy pulp. She didn't know how long she had been sitting there. Time was a concept she had no knowledge of anymore. She could have been there for hours, days even. Horrific burns littered her body - electrocuting the girl was nothing near what they had done to her after he had stopped recording her screaming and crying and struggling as volt upon volt assaulted her frail form. Before he had continued the torture, he had placed the dying phone on the table he had positioned in front of her. He cruelly had positioned a mirror on top of it to face her. She stared into her eyes, her broken, teary eyes. Her vision was blurry, like a steamy window. Nothing of hers was functioning properly. She always tried to put on a brave face, but now all of her defensive walls had been shattered mercilessly. She couldn't even stay strong at this point - the torture just kept coming wave upon wave like the fearsome sea itself. 

"So your precious detective has already noticed your disappearance? That's no fun at all, you know. I was hoping we could drag this on for weeks. By then I'm sure you'd have forgotten your name! But this is okay too, I suppose. It just means we have to work faster which is unfortunate for you, my dear." He paced around her, her hazy vision just barely locking onto his moving figure, a ghost of white dissolving as he walked around the back of the chair again. 

She was terrified. _No more... Please... I can't do this anymore!_ She didn't know why she had been selected to be used to get to the detective - there was plenty of other people, however she would never wish anything she had experienced on even her worst enemies. All she could be grateful for was that she'd taken one for the team for everyone dear to Shuichi. She would protect them, and then she would protect him. Her torturer sprung up beside her, to her left and held her face up to meet his. Two pairs of eyes met - one of pure malice and one portraying utter _despair._

"Because you've been really, really good. I'm going to let you pick how we play! I know, I'm brilliant. My colleagues have to be reminded this fact all the time, I'm so happy you understand me." He was just teasing her, rubbing it into her face that he was in a position of great power and she was _nothing._ He stuck his pointy nose up into the air, just to look down on her more. "Which do you value more? Your tongue or your eyes? Be careful how you answer - your choice will decide your inevitable fate." He drew a pair of silver scissors from his pocket, snapping the blades together to make his point. "I'll maybe be so kind as to send these to your sweet little Shuichi Saihara! Wouldn't he be so glad to know he can keep a special piece of you forever?" He cackled, edging closer and closer.

She couldn't answer him. This was too awful. Her whole body gave out and she fell into unconsciousness. 

-

After eating breakfast and getting changed, which had in fact proved to be a challenge, he called Maki and Kaito to see if they'd like to go out with him for a bit considering he needed to clear his head. There was a lot on his mind now. The identity of the thief. Why he broke into his apartment. What his true intentions were. Nothing linked up. He hoped that after talking things out with his two best friends, things would finally begin to fall into place. They had agreed to go to the cafe together instead of just meeting up there like they usually would. Shuichi had to explain to his friends that he had hurt his leg and couldn't walk too far without being dragged through hell with excruciating pain coursing through his aching limb. He hadn't said that the thief had assaulted him; Kaito would have gone ballistic. He knew, however, that he would be asked about it later and so prepared for embarrassment. _Oh boy._

Maki and Kaito had shown up outside of the building shortly afterwards in Maki's car. It was a dark red Mercedes which was impeccably clean. The girl would threaten to lynch anyone who dared to ruin her perfect seats or scratch up the brilliant paintwork. You could tell through her aggressive possessiveness that she was proud of her ownership over the vehicle, and God help _anyone_ who disrespected her _precious vehicle_. It was a felony of the highest order. Kaito had helped Shuichi leave his room and make his way to the car where Maki was protectively waiting inside. Kaito opened the back door for the detective and helped him climb in then closed the door and sat in the front seat next to his girlfriend. It was a matter of minutes before they had pulled up outside of their favourite hangout spot. Maki took care in parking her car before the trio got out of the vehicle and found their way to their usual table; a round table in a small booth almost beside the counter. Shuichi sat opposite the couple with his damaged leg propped up on a chair.

"So," Kaito started, gesturing with his hands towards Shuichi's leg, "care to explain?"

Shuichi laughed sheepishly. Of course he was going to be vague about it. "I just hurt myself, its fine. Don't worry, it's just a sprain."

Maki and her boyfriend shared a look. "I know injuries. That doesn't look like you've just 'hurt yourself'. Spit out the truth, Shuichi. Did _he_ hurt you?" Maki was never much of a conversationalist, but she did say her fair share in a conversation. Kaito nodded in agreement. 

Shuichi sighed in defeat. They were bound to find out anyway. "Alright. I'll tell you what happened, but you're not allowed to laugh, okay?" He pulled his hat over his eyes in embarrassment. The duo nodded immediately. "So, after I figured out what the hint on the calling card meant, I went to Pearlhall Manor. Turns out there was a party being held there for famous celebrities and Sayaka Maizono allowed me to go as her plus one. The thief showed up there and stole Mahiru Koizumi's camera. Oh, she's a famous photographer by the way. Afterwards the thief made a break for the roof and I gave chase. On the roof he attacked me and took pictures before running away when I couldn't get up. That's all..." He bit his lip anxiously. 

There was silence for a few seconds before Kaito Momota let out a loud howl of a laugh. "HAHAHA! _You?_ Got _beaten up?_ By a childish little _midget?_ This shit's too good! _Oh my God!_ " 

Shuichi could feel himself sinking into his shoulders. He wanted to dissolve into thin air and disappear, ceasing to exist. This is what he was afraid of. "K-Kaito be quiet! You're disturbing people! A-And it's really not funny..."

"Sorry, sorry!" Kaito did not, in fact, seem very sorry as he wiped tears of laughter from his eyes. Maki kicked him underneath the table earning a small yelp from the boy.

"Do you want to die?" She threatened. She wouldn't actually kill anyone however serious she portrayed herself; death threats were just her thing. She'd never hurt anyone unless they did something absolutely awful to her friends or, most importantly, Kaito.

"No! I was just joking Maki Roll!" Maki smiled to herself after hearing this, that nickname never failed to make her blush no matter how many times she'd heard it. 

"Good." She turned her attention back to the detective with his head in his hands. "It's not broken is it? Let me guess... Sprained?" 

"Y-Yeah... How'd you know?" Slowly, he took his hands from his red face and tried to regain his composure. 

She shrugged, looking away slightly but not completely breaking eye contact. "There's injuries at the nursery sometimes. Nothing special."

"Children sprain their knees at the nursery? Sounds dangerous." Shuichi asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Children are weird little creatures who always get up to no good. Don't ask me about it." She appeared to be growing irritated so Shuichi didn't bother replying. 

Kaito's face lit up having recalled one of the stories Maki had told him about her work at the nursery. "One time a couple of the children were on the trampoline they have there and the bigger child was bouncing around on it whilst the smaller, younger boy was fumbling around on it not being able to stand. Then he was accidentally bounced off and hit the floor face first and two of his bottom teeth went straight through his bottom lip. His parents had to be called and an ambulance arrived for him. Poor dude." His face turned sour in disgust, having imagined the scene. 

"There was a lot of blood. And crying, screaming children. So I had them all take a nap... A nice, long, quiet nap." The conversation was becoming quite awkward for Maki, and Shuichi picked up on this. She hated children, so Lord knows why she picked a career in taking care of them. All he knew was that she grew up in an orphanage and she had to look after the younger children there. If she was free from those children why would she work with more? He thought it could probably be to reminisce on the past, perhaps. He decided to steer the conversation away from the girl who was clearly uncomfortable with discussing her career.

"So," He slid the card across the table towards the pair, "what are you able to make of this?"

The two stared at the card for a bit, reading it in their heads. Kaito made a few noises of contemplation to himself before opening his mouth to speak. "It's talking about mirrors. Jeez, I could be a better detective than you if you couldn't realise that, man!"

If Shuichi took offense to the insult, he didn't show it outwardly. "Kaito, where would you find numerous mirrors?" His voice was deadpan.

Apprehensive about the sudden confrontation, he leaned back an acute fraction to escape the detective's piercing gaze. "Uh... Like a mirror shop or something?"

Shuichi smiled, having beaten the trainee astronaut. "And where would we find one of those?"

It was then Kaito realised he'd messed up. "Not... Anywhere near here... Sorry, bro. I don't know."

"There are other places you can find mirrors. It doesn't have to be a shop for mirrors, you idiots." Maki was staring at the table idly but her point was valid.

Shuichi gasped in realisation. He had an idea. He'd try it out later though, he wouldn't abandon his friends right now in case he was wrong. "Thank you, Maki. I think I understand now." He smiled kindly at her. She saw this and half smiled back after a moment.

"Wait - what are you both talking about? I don't understand!" The purple haired boy exclaimed, bewildered.

"Ah, Kaito. It's nothing. I may be wrong about this but it's just an idea. I'll tell you later." The navy haired boy pulled the card back over the him with a grin.

"Speaking of telling you something..." Kaito started, looking over to Maki anxiously. She hesitantly nodded slowly, their eyes connected the entire time. He swallowed nervously as the pair looked back towards the detective. "We have news."

"Whats wrong?" Shuichi observed their body language and began to worry.

"Maki's pregnant."

"W-What? R-Really?" The shorter boy was wide eyed, both shocked and proud. "Congratulations, both of you!"

"Thank you..." Maki whispered a reply as she reached out to hold Kaito's hand on the tabletop. "That means a lot."

"How long? I'm so happy for you guys." Shuichi was genuinely happy for both of them, but a creeping feeling of jealousy bubbled up his throat. They'd found love in the weirdest way possible, but Shuichi was alone. He felt left out being the only single person in their friendship group and now they were having a child. He thought about how amazing it would feel to know that the person you love is carrying your own child. He wasn't particularly fussed about having children one day, but the thought still crossed his mind.

"We think she's maybe around seven, maybe eight, weeks into the first trimester. We don't really know at the moment. We haven't gone to any scans yet, but we will be soon. Maki's amazing, isn't she? Growing a mini Kaito-Maki hybrid inside of her." Kaito beamed brightly.

"Kaito. Never say something as disturbing as that again." Maki slapped his hand lightly, offended at what she thought was an insult against their child. Kaito chuckled in response. 

Shuichi smiled. "Do you have any name ideas yet?" He wasn't sure how to continue this conversation. It wasn't like anyone he knew had been pregnant before so he'd never experienced being broken this sort of news. Still, he was trying his best not to seem awkward. They looked anxious when they had told him indicating to him that it had taken a lot to tell him - he was not going to ruin this for them. 

Maki and Kaito shared a look. "Not yet... I want a girl called Makiko though..." Maki smiled to herself, holding in a giggle.

Shuichi raised an eyebrow. "And why's that? There's n-nothing wrong with it - don't worry! I'm just curious." He feared he may have said something that upset her and fumbled to correct himself.

Their eyes met - red to gold - and she smirked. "Makiko means 'child of Maki'. I _would_ do it. Just watch me."

"But why _your name_? What about me?" The taller boy whined like a baby himself.

She sighed dejectedly. "I was joking. I'd name the baby either Kaida, Rikku, Sunako or Kana if it's a girl. Maybe Kioshi, Takeo or Ryu for a boy. I thought of them off of the top of my head - don't criticise me." She bit the right side of her lip and laced her fingers together on her lap underneath the table. "No reason in particular. They just seem to... Speak to me."

Shuichi made a mental note to look up the names later. He couldn't help but have a sinking feeling that those names had something to do with violence, but who could blame her? She loved violence. "Good luck on coming up with more names. Thank you for opening up to me about this."

Kaito nervously sighed, furrowing his brows as if he were searching for a way to phrase his next sentence. "Yeah... About the baby... We're gonna have our hands tied for the next few months so... We won't be able to hang out so often. Sorry, sidekick." Kaito never was a good liar, but the way he fidgeted uncomfortably and couldn't keep direct eye contact gave his facade away. Shuichi noticed his abnormal behaviour but, knowing that Kaito would never lie to him, linked his actions to the words leaving his mouth, ironically enough. 

Shuichi's lips fell into a frown. "Oh, I see. That's completely okay, I understand. It's a big step in both of your lives; I'll give you two space." Hearing Kaito's words had dragged down his good mood quite a bit, but he had to be understanding. He may not know the position his friends were in but he'd do his best to support them. 

"Thanks bro. I can always count on you! Well, we gotta go. I'm gonna break the news to my grandparents. You want us to drop you home?" The pair stood up as they waited to Shuichi to answer the question. 

"Ah, no. I'll find my own way back. I'll maybe get Kyoko or Kaede to get me. Your situation is more important than mine. Take care." The detective waved them off, a bad premonition curdling in his stomach. The duo had tensed up at the names stated though Shuichi could only guess why. Maybe there was a little bit of friction between them at the moment? Fearing it would make them uncomfortable, he knew better than to bring it up and let it slide. _**Bad move.**_

"Goodbye." Maki smiled at the dark haired boy as she grabbed Kaito's hand and left the cafe. They held the door open for a short, pale boy in almost all white with long purple hair who strutted inside cheerfully. His shoes were a raven black with purple heels underneath his white trousers. His most obvious feature was the checkered scarf secured around his neck on top of his white jacket. He hopped onto one of the stools in front of the counter and began talking to the barista. Shuichi didn't know this particular staff member, he'd never had a conversation with this guy - it was always the man with a pointed nose and short brown hair with a fringe he swept neatly over the right side of his face. It was odd that he wasn't here. Maybe he was late. After his friends disappeared, Shuichi was left sitting by himself, helpless and unable to walk. He truly was happy for Kaito and Maki but he didn't want to be isolated. Now he felt he had no one. Kaede became a recluse to practice her piano pieces, Kyoko was too proud to spend time with Shuichi unless they were discussing work, they were rivals after all. And now Kaito and Maki were going to be occupied with a baby from now on. 

He sighed and rested his head on one hand which was balled into a fist as he remembered his idea about the card. Picking it up between two fingers, he grabbed his crutches and struggled into the toilets. The toilets were empty, luckily for Shuichi, however there weren't many people in the cafe to begin with due to it being a Monday. The detective stared into the mirror at his own reflection. It showed to him the truth about himself that he couldn't hide or change. The mirror showed him the boy the world saw. Everything they saw. A weak boy. Both emotionally and physically. He could be manipulated like a worm on a string. He was shy and meek and lacked confidence. How could anyone think he was a good detective? They just pitied him. He knew it. He didn't need to hear words from the glass before him to be smacked in the face with the truth. It was staring right back at him. His eyes roamed critically from one feature to another and catalogued it in his brain. He didn't see what everyone else saw at all - the brave, intelligent boy he really was.

He held the card up to the mirror to distract himself from his reflection and peered into what the glass had replied. The mirror presented to him exactly what he had been looking for. The letters in the hint on the card were written in such a way that when held in front of a mirror, a message would appear. The letters he had not seen before were upside down so he swiftly flipped the card around and read the message: ' _IT'S A LIE_ '. What Shuichi couldn't understand was why the thief would go through the trouble of breaking into his home just to give him a card which, clearly, was just a fraud. He didn't try too hard to hide this though, could he have wanted Shuichi to figure it out? Whatever his reasoning was, this sounded like a warning. This was definitely what the villain had wanted. His plan was going as he expected.

Shuichi slipped the card into his pocket once again and left the toilets. His mind was flooded with analytical speculations, not at all understanding the criminal's thoughts. Couldn't the thief just have told him in person, or did he just enjoy playing around with the detective himself? _Stupid, frustrating thief._ And to think Shuichi was beginning to believe that the boy was all good... He felt like an idiot. He walked over to the counter and climbed onto a leather seated stool three seats down from the boy in white who had entered not too long ago. The boy's feet barely even reached the metal foot rest and so he swung his feet back and forth, kicking the wooden counter each time his feet came forwards again. He was staring into a paper cup of coffee, having taken the lid off and left it laying beside the cup on the counter as he hummed quietly to himself. Shuichi tried not to stare but there was something about this boy that send chills down his spine. Shuichi turned to face the counter rather than the other boy as the purple haired stranger called the blonde barista over. The detective could hear him whispering quickly, followed by a small chuckle though he didn't mean to eavesdrop. The barista smiled at the boy and got to work with whatever had been asked of him. It looked like he was making coffee - just the way Shuichi liked too. It was a shame he had forgotten his wallet that morning. He only had enough for a cab ride home if it was necessary. He wasn't even the 50th customer that day! There was no way he'd be able to snatch a free beverage that way. The blonde began scribbling something on the brown paper cup with a black marker, the boy smiling from ear to ear the entire time. It was creepy, Shuichi noted. He had never seen anyone so thrilled over coffee. 

Suddenly the barista approached the unsuspecting detective and slid the cup over the counter towards him. "It's on the house. That guy over there paid for you. Enjoy!" He beamed brightly before vanishing into a room behind the counter. 

Shuichi inspected the cup. There was a message left on it from the boy reading: ' _Hey cutie! Call me xo - Kokichi Ouma_ ' followed by his phone number. He looked over towards the boy named Kokichi who was gazing back at him in return with a warm grin blossomed over his face. He shuffled over a couple of seats only leaving one in between the two to separate them.

"Hey, come here often?" He smirked. _That voice._ That childish voice was eerily familiar and it sent anxiety pulsing through his entire body.

Shuichi pulled his hat down so he couldn't see his eyes. "Y-Yeah... Sometimes. Why?" His voice was soft and meek. No one had ever pulled his sort of thing with him before. This was new territory he was stumbling across. 

"Nee-heehee~ Maybe I should visit more regularly if I'd be able to see a cutie like you frequently." He winked earning a blush from the detective. _What on Earth was happening?_

"I-I have no idea how to respond to that, but th-thank you?" He removed the lid from his coffee and took a sip.

The other boy leaned forwards onto the counter and laced his fingers together under his chin, never looking away from the flustered detective. "I appreciate the honesty, at least. So, I didn't quite catch your name."

Shuichi swallowed the coffee, licking the scorching liquid off of his top lip. "That's because I didn't tell you. My name is Shuichi Saihara."

" _The_ Shuichi Saihara? You mean as in the detective who's been all over the news for the past week? Wow! I'm talking to a celebrity!" His violet eyes lit up excitedly as if he had seen something wonderful. His lips were pulled up into a brilliant grin as his head shot up from his hands.

"Shh! I'm not a celebrity, keep it down! I'm just a normal detective, nothing special." Shuichi could feel his face burning up from embarrassment. He took another mouthful of coffee. "This is actually really good. It's just like how I like my own coffee. How'd you know?"

Kokichi shrugged dismissively. "Eh, it's how I like my coffee too. I didn't know what you'd like so I decided to try my luck. Guess I did something right!" He drank his own coffee as if to prove a point. "Mmm! Delish!" 

"You know you didn't have to buy me this, right?" Shuichi wasn't trying to be rude, he was actually quite grateful. He just wasn't used to people being so kind to him, especially other boys.

"Oh, I know. It was just a kind gesture and an excuse to finally talk to you in person." Kokichi stared into his drink using his hand to shake the cup in small circles slowly. "Do you have a problem with that?"

His eyes widened at the accusation and he held his hands up in front of him as if to protect himself from the other boy's words. "Ah- n-no! Not at all! It's just no one has really done this for me before. I'm just surprised, that's all. Thank you, by the way."

The purple eyed boy smiled to himself. "No problem."

"I have a question... If you don't mind?" Shuichi peered over to the boy who was finishing the last of his coffee, tipping his head back to catch every last drop of the hot beverage.

He wiped his mouth on his white sleeve however it didn't seem to stain the fabric. "How can I help you?"

"Um..." The detective looked away, averting his gaze from the boy and his drink. "What's up with... The writing? On the cup."

"It's my number." He slipped his phone out from his pocket and unlocked it. He held the purple cased device out to Shuichi. "You should call me sometime. Or I could call you. Gimme your number please."

Slowly looking back over to the stranger, the dark haired boy hesitantly took the phone from his hands and began inputting his own phone number. He wasn't sure how he could turn him down after he had been so kind. "O-Oh sure..." After he was finished he quickly handed the phone back.

The smaller boy snatched the phone back and read over the contact info. "I'll be sure to hit you up later, baby." He leaned back on his stool and pointed towards Shuichi's leg. "What happened there? With your leg? You hurt yourself or something?"

Shuichi had completely forgotten. "Something like that. It's my fault anyway. I guess it was just karma for my past failures." He looked down, his face screwing up into one of self-hatred.

Kokichi suppressed both a smirk and a giggle. This was really, really funny. He knew exactly what happened. "Aw, no, don't give yourself a hard time. You'll be back on your feet again soon." He paused. " _Hopefully._ "

Shuichi leaned away from the boy, shifting on his seat. "W-What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"Nishishi~ It was a joke. There's nothing to worry about. Not yet anyway." He flipped his hands as if to brush off the matter, but the detective was still somewhat uncomfortable around his new acquaintance. Could he even call him that?

"You're freaking me out... Don't say such creepy things." He bit his lip anxiously.

"Sorry, sorry. Ignore me, I was just messing with you. Or was I? I _am_ a liar, after all." He laughed again, a catty gleam in his amethyst eyes which Shuichi struggled to look away from. 

This boy seemed so familiar but Shuichi couldn't pinpoint where he had seen him before. He decided to hit him with the big question." Kokichi, do I know you from somewhere? You seem familiar for some odd reason."

A wide grin broke out on his face. "Aw that's really sweet, but no. We've probably crossed paths at some point since we both live in the same city. It wouldn't be impossible for that to be the case, you know." He spoke calmly and seriously, but with a kind tone too. "Don't look too much into it. It's probably just your imagination. Or it's fate that we met, you never know. Maybe we met in a dream!" He winked whilst he finished his last sentence.

He was right. It probably was nothing. Shuichi was just paranoid. "Yeah, that makes sense. Sorry for assuming that." He pulled his hat down once again in embarrassment.

Kokichi stood up, leaving his cup on the counter. "Welp! I'm gonna go! You wanna come with me? We can get to know each other a little better."

Shuichi wasn't sure about this. "Um... I'm not too sure about that. Maybe another time?"

He stamped his foot and sighed. "Are you asking me or telling me?"

Shuichi half shrugged. "Asking?"

"Well, the answer is nope. Come on! We're going for a walk!" He grabbed Shuichi's sleeve and began to pull him. 

The next thing he knew, he was being lead through town by a boy he'd only just met. He wasn't sure how it had happened, but somehow Kokichi had managed to get him to agree to going out with him. They were in the middle of town, the gloomy sun peeking out from underneath several dark, heavy clouds. No one was really out, seeing that the weather was lacking heat and sunshine, so it was easier for the two to navigate around the streets.

"Kokichi! Where are we going?" Shuichi couldn't keep up on his crutches. Kokichi had to keep stopping and waiting for the taller boy to catch up before running off ahead again.

"You'll see! It's a surprise!" He skipped along the pavements, avoiding stepping on any cracks like he was playing his own little game. 

Shuichi was tired and his hands hurt from lifting his entire weight all day. He groaned. "You're too fast. I can't keep up."

Kokichi stopped hopping from square tile to square tile and walked back over to Shuichi. He put one arm around Shuichi's back before he spoke. "Hold on tight." Before Shuichi could respond, he had been swept off of his feet and was being carried bridal style by the smaller, thinner boy. "This better?" You could hear the strain in his voice as he tried to carry the detective.

He held the crutches to his chest to avoid hitting the smaller boy with them. "Y-You know you can put me down, right? I can walk by myself. You don't have to hurt yourself or damage your back for me."

Kokichi laughed mockingly. "Are you doubting my abilities, Mr Detective? I'm a lot stronger than you think, thank you very much. Now stop whining and let's go." And with that, he began sprinting as fast as his legs could carry him without losing his balance.

Shuichi held on as tight as he could. Honestly, it was terrifying. He'd never have expected such a small, frail looking boy to be able to carry him. Guess the world is full of surprises. "I don't like being carried! You're going to drop me! Please put me down!" He clung onto the boy's neck tighter and closed his eyes.

"Okay! But only because we're here!" He plopped Shuichi, who opened his eyes cautiously and appearing a bit dazed, back onto his feet.

"The park?" Shuichi asked, looking at those same black gates he had seen yesterday.

"Yup! Let's go sit by the water. It's peaceful over there. When I need to spend some time by myself I go there to reflect and calm down. It's nice, come see." He threaded his fingers together behind his head nonchalantly and began sauntering off into the park. "What are you waiting for? An invitation?"

Shuichi jumped a little at the question and began following behind quickly. "N-No! I'm coming!"

The pair made their way across the grass towards an area where people rarely went. It was caged off by metal fencing so no one could get in however there were many occurrences where people had entered. Somehow, it wasn't surprising to Shuichi that Kokichi was one of those people. Kokichi showed him a gap in the fence, which appeared to have been cut open, by a tall tree which hid it perfectly. "Here, I'll hold it open while you go in."

Shuichi felt a pang of worry in his chest. "Is it okay to do this? It's got to be restricted from us for a reason..."

The purple haired boy sighed heavily in frustration. "I come here all the time. I know places where no one will see us. Stop being a baby and come on! I promise, nothing bad will happen. You have my word." He shook the fence slightly, telling Shuichi to hurry up and enter. So he did, very, very cautiously.

Shuichi carefully clambered through the fence, followed by Kokichi who seemed more than pleased with his efforts. "Alright. I'm in." To be truthful, Shuichi didn't want to be there. He wanted to go home and rest but going out with this strange boy was the least he could do for the kind stranger who had bought him a drink.

"Cool! Let's go this way! There's a pretty view of the lake over here. It's really captivating and beautiful, just like your face. I think you'll like it." He smiled at the taller boy, pointing towards a small area by the glistening water, sheltered off by a congregation of trees dancing silently in the breeze.

There was something about what the boy had just said that made his heart pound and cheeks flush red. And he didn't completely hate it. "Y-Yeah. I'd like to see that." The duo walked towards the designated area quietly, only the sound of their feet trampling the twigs and grass able to be heard.

Kokichi had lead them to a closed in area shrouded in shade from the trees enclosing them. There was small pieces of furniture placed against trees, ranging from mattresses to old sofas and chairs, that Shuichi had assumed Kokichi had brought to make his time there more comfortable. Over the mattress was a makeshift gazebo made from a plastic sheet and long branches holding it up. It possessed a resemblance to a den made by little kids. There was an opening near the water, a black blanket laid down on the bank. "Welcome to the hangout. Make yourself at home!" The purple haired boy skipped over to the mattress and reached into the mini fort, pulling out a carrier bag. "Hungry? I brought this food here yesterday. Don't worry, it's safe to eat. Everything is packaged and kept cool." He reached into the bag set a couple of things onto the mattress. Two bottles of grape pants and a tub of red grapes. _Damn, did this boy love grapes_. "Want some?" 

Shuichi felt too bad to turn down the offer. He was being so generous, after all. "If you don't mind, aha." Shuichi took the drink Kokichi held out to him as the boy took his own drink as well as the grapes and walkes over to the lake. 

Kokichi sat down on the large black blanket and patted it. "Care to join me?" He winked at the detective before turning back around to face the crystal water.

Shuichi nodded, though he knew the other boy wouldn't be able to see him, and carefully carried himself over to where he was sitting. He dropped a crutch behind him as he lowered himself down into a sitting position. He looked out into the water before him admiring how the water rippled and rolled underneath the wind. A single ray of sunlight had managed to filter through the thick gloom and danced upon the water, distorting the light into a fascinating white blur. "You were right when you said this was beautiful."

Kokichi threw a grape into the air and caught it with his mouth. "Told ya so. I _never_ lie."

Shuichi chuckled, opening his drink and taking a sip. Grape panta definitely wasn't his favourite flavour but he wouldn't let Kokichi know. Sharing that sort of information was unnecessary, especially when he knew the boy liked it so much. What sort of person would he be to crush someone like that? "Oh, come on, Kokichi. You know that's a lie in itself."

The purple haired boy smirked. "You caught me! You're right! After all, I _am_ a liar." There it was again. That strange feeling of familiarity which made Shuichi's stomach flip on itself. 

"Mm... I'm sure you are, Kokichi." Be stared back into the water distantly.

Kokichi leaned forwards to look at Shuichi's face. "You okay? Did I upset you?"

Shuichi bit his lip. "No, that's not it. You just remind me of someone I guess."

"Oh, I _do_? Who?" He leaned even further forwards, a catty smile lifting his lips into a wide, unsettling grin.

"That's the thing. I can't put my finger on it. I'll try to remember and get back to you." The detective rested his elbows on his legs and leant his head on his fists as he continued to stare into the rippling, murky water.

"Whoever it is needs to be exterminated. I'm an original. _No one_ can be like me. Sorry, I don't make the rules - it's law." The smaller boy snarled as he gulped down more panta.

The detective chuckled lightly. "It's really not."

The other boy rolled his violet eyes. "Yeah, yeah Mr I-Know-All-About-The-Law." He pushed the half empty tub of grapes over to his companion. "Want some? Take some now before I eat them all."

Shuichi plucked a handful of grapes from the tub and placed them in his lap. "Thanks. I have to know about the law - I'm a detective. Well, an _apprentice detective_ at least. I'm not _that_ good." He shrugged as he popped a grape into his mouth. When he had eaten it he washed it down with panta. 

Kokichi stole a grape from Shuichi's lap earning a dirty look from the detective. He giggled as he threw it into his mouth cheekily. "I think you're a good detective, if that means anything to you. I also think that you should shut up and stop putting yourself down because your negativity puts other people who actually see your full potential down too."

Shuichi's eyes widened. "R-Really? You don't think I'm awful? I really do try my best to see all of my cases through. I've never failed a case until I was assigned the phantom thief case. He's... He's really intelligent. He shouldn't be underestimated. I've learned my lesson."

"Sounds like a cool guy, huh? He sounds so _sexy_ and _mysterious_!" Kokichi beamed teasingly.

The detective shrugged. "I mean, you _could_ say that, I suppose."

"Do you think he's too difficult to catch?"

"No. I just need to corner him just right. I'll get him to take off that mask and reveal his identity no matter how many attempts it takes."

Kokichi's grin only grew. "That's what I like to hear! Confidence and determination looks really good on you."

Shuichi pulled his hat over his eyes to hide the more than obvious blush creeping up on his cheeks. "Th-Thank you. I've been trying to work on my confidence. I'm just really shy and not too great with people. I hope I don't make you uncomfortable." He chuckled softly as his eyes met with Kokichi's.

"Actually, you don't make me uncomfortable at all. It's quite the opposite." He tipped the rest of the contents of the tub into his mouth, efficiently emptying it. "You're nice to be around. I'm glad you agreed to come with me today."

"Thank you, but I didn't exactly agree to accompany you in an adventure." Shuichi beamed though he put on an unamused voice. It wasn't cruel or threatening, he was just playing. 

His companion put a finger to his own lips. "Shh! I don't have the time for a history lesson, Shuichi. My time is _precious._ " The boys exchanged a warm smile. 

"And if it's so precious why are you wasting it on me?" The detective finished his panta and set the bottle down beside him carefully, not allowing it to roll into the water. 

"That's simple. You're interesting." He didn't let Shuichi reply as he stood up again and dusted himself off. "Okie dokie! I need to go now. You coming or staying here by yourself? I doubt you remember the way back." 

"No, I don't. I guess I'll let you show me the way back." Shuichi tried to stand but slipped and fell flat onto his injured leg. He bit his lip and clamped his mouth shut in an attempt to muffle his shriek.

Kokichi laughed. "Nee-heehee you're really a sight for sore eyes. Here, allow me." He held out his hand.

Shuichi quickly grabbed on, fearing that the boy would snatch his hand away and leave him alone and helpless. "Th-Thanks..." Kokichi gripped onto both of his arms as the helpless detective hooked an arm around his shoulders, clutching onto the boy's white jacket tightly and swiftly pulled him onto his feet. 

Kokichi picked up the crutches and gave the detective the once over to make sure he was stable before letting him go. "There we are. You good to go?"

Shuichi staggered away from the water carefully. "Y-Yeah. Thank you. Let's go."

Kokichi beamed brightly and skipped ahead out from the protective wall of trees. "Follow me! Try to keep up, Shuichi!" He happily sauntered off again as the detective struggled to match his pace. He was not used to crutches at all - he'd never used them in his life before yesterday and they were proving to be quite the challenge. Nevertheless, Shuichi liked challenges. At least ones that didn't force him out of his comfort zone. Kokichi escorted Shuichi to the gates of the park, often sprinting ahead and stopping to wait for the detective to catch up as soon as he felt he'd run too far in front. He really was like a child, Shuichi noted.

They stood outside the gates, face to face. "So this is it. It's been a good day. Thanks for the coffee and surprisingly fun day." Shuichi beamed shyly, averting his eyes slightly.

"Likewise. We should do this again sometime. Of course, I'll take you out properly once you're able to walk again. Only if you're up to it, obviously." He returned Shuichi's affectionate smile with one of his own, hands laced nonchalantly behind his head. 

"I assume this makes us friends now, right?"

"The pleasure is all mine, detective."

A moment of silence. Not awkward in the slightest. An appreciative, warm silence.

Shuichi was the first to break this peaceful quiet. "I should go now."

Kokichi tucked his hair behind an ear. "How do you plan on getting home? Need an _amazing companion_ such as I to call someone?"

Shuichi smiled at his sarcasm. "It's quite alright. On the way back I called a cab to come and collect me." He looked towards the road. "Speaking of which, it's here. Again, thank you so much for everything you've done. I usually struggle to talk to people but I'm glad I've made a new friend. Goodbye!" 

Kokichi watched with a smile as the detective climbed into the back of the taxi. "Farewell. We'll meet again, my beloved detective."

The black cab rushed off as Shuichi, blushing intensely at the nickname, smiled and waved through the window at him. Kokichi released the sinister smirk he had been holding back for hours to avoid scaring his precious detective off. The purple haired boy was proud of his immaculate efforts that day. He'd never have expected that he'd meet the detective in person, especially at the café when his leg was injured, but his timing was extremely fortunate. The boy now was in possession of Shuichi's contact details, and he'd use this to it's full potential. _Good God this was going to be fun!_ He was easily able to obtain the taller boy's friendship, even if it was only truly just beginning. All he had to do _now_ was keep up the nice guy act before eventually revealing his true colours, if he could be bothered to, that is. Maybe it would ruin his fun, though he couldn't ignore the fact that it would make everything way more interesting for himself. Anyway, toying with people's feelings was one of his hobbies. He didn't care how he had to do it - he was going to steal the detective's heart. He was going to make that absolutely perfect boy his own no matter what. No matter the cost. And now he had two fronts to work with. An angel by day. The devil by night. 

The stage was set. _**Lights, camera, deception.**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lame chapter!! I've been really, really sick and my brain hUrts but I tried my best to produce SOMETHING aa I'm really sorry!! I promise that the story will pick up again over the next couple chapters!!
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed this tho
> 
> Next chapter will feed your oumasai shipping souls


	8. An Unofficial First Date (1/2)

The couple sat silently in the brunette's car, the low hum of the engine rumbling in their ears. They had left the warm cafe and were on their way home. Lying to their best friend had made the two of them feel incredibly guilty, but it was a deed that had to be done. Maki and Kaito knew _they_ were watching. Listening. They would know if the duo were planning anything. This was the only way to protect Shuichi, right? If they did what they were told then both the detective and the girl in the video would remain unharmed. That's what they were told. Though they weren't personally good friends, they still knew the girl meant a good deal to Shuichi. They couldn't risk her getting hurt even more. They couldn't risk those sick bastards hurting their best friend. The couple were trapped, unable to do anything about the situation. If the police were called or Shuichi was told, the girl would die. Shuichi would die. The pair of them would die. It was a losing battle. Hopeless. But that's how it was going to work. They had to stay away from him as much as they could until it all died down. They had been contacted the night of the heist and threatened with the lives of so many innocent people. The things they saw in that video... They were horrific enough to scar the strongest minded of people... Who would do such an inhumane thing? The text messages they had received from the girl's torturer had been deleted so they had no proof anything had happened. Their phones barely functioned at this point - they had been disabled by the evil organisation. The devices has been bugged so everything they said could be heard. The location settings on both phones weren't turning off, giving away their location at all times. They were trapped. Pawns. They were to be moved wherever they pleased, and they couldn't do anything about it. The final message received was still fresh in their minds, clawing and clawing at their conscience like a cat on a scratching post. Relentless. _'If you dare tell anyone about this, I’ll cut your tongues out and choke you with them. And I'll make your precious detective watch.'_ Each word was full of malice. Overflowing with malice, like a cup being filled with boiling water, more and more and more until it spilled from the top. Whatever they wanted, they were determined to get it no matter the cost. The enemy, lurking in their minds, gnawed at their very souls. They may have been under the impression that they were all safe now, but would it really be that simple? No one would be left unscathed by the dreadful despondency to come. 

-  
Shuichi had arrived home not too long ago after a fairly hectic, howbeit enjoyable, day out. It was now early evening on a Monday and his week had begun on a high note. He had met a shorter boy who had bought him a coffee and taken his phone number, then had taken him out to the park for a while. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't written down the other boy's phone number. He wouldn't be able to contact him unless he was messaged first. That sucked, Shuichi was almost looking forward to meeting Kokichi again. The detective was eating dinner on his sofa, his injured leg laying out straight resting on a cushion and his other leg draped off of the side of the couch. He, once again, was watching danganronpa. There had been yet another trial and only a few people remained. He had been rooting for the Ultimate Ice Skater - she was incredibly intelligent and could easily unearth all the secrets of each murder case, much like a detective herself. Howbeit, she had been murdered because of her deduction skills which made her trial a challenge for the rest of the contestants. Her murderer, thankfully, was revealed to be the Ultimate Tattooist. Shuichi never really liked this character much, and he definitely didn't like her now he'd killed his current favourite off. She was executed in an intriguing way, to say the least. It was undeniably brutal. Shuichi couldn't help but feel bad for her, even though she had it coming. She knew the risks, and she still went through with murder. The episode had just finished and it left the detective clinging onto the edge of his seat as he finished off the last of his chicken. Suddenly his phone began to sound, high pitched noises alerted the detective of his newly received notification. He picked up the phone and read the words on the screen.

**Powwow**  
_Unknown has added you to a group    17:58_

Unknown? Shuichi cautiously unlocked his phone to investigate. He discovered that he had, in fact, been added to a group on Powwow, though it was only himself and 'Unknown'. The person who added him began to speak knowing that Shuichi was online. Shuichi replied immediately, unaware of who was messaging him. 

**Unnamed Group**

_Unknown_ : Helloooo??  _18:00_

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : Hello.  
_Shuichi Saihara_ : Who is this?  _18:00_

 _Unknown_ : It's meeeee!! Coffee boy!! _18:01_

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : ...?  
_Shuichi Saihara_ : What?  _18:02_

 _Unknown_ : Your memory is AWFUL!!!!!!!!!! It's ME!!!!!! K O K I C H I O U M A !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  _18:03_

Oh... Oh. So that's who it was. One out of many, many of Shuichi's questions had been answered.

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : Why didn't you just text me normally?  _18:04_

 _Unknown_ : BECAUUUUUSE  
_Unknown_ : Then you'd have my number!!!  
_Unknown_ : So I made a group! You can't see my number until I accept your private message request, so I just might not so I can remain a mystery xx   _18:06_

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : Accept it.  _18:06_

 _Unknown_ : Noooope   _18:07_

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : Kokichi. Now.   _18:07_

 _Unknown_ : Fine >:(   _18:07_

_Unknown has accepted your message request! You can now rename Unknown's contact._

_Shuichi Saihara_ : Thank you.  _18:10_

 _Shuichi Saihara has renamed Unknown 'Kokichi Ouma'_

_Kokichi Ouma_ : BORING   
_Kokichi Ouma_ : If you're gonna rename me, at least call me something cool!!   _18:11_

 _Shuichi Saihara_ : ...Like what?   _18:11_

_Kokichi Ouma has renamed Kokichi Ouma 'PANTALORD42069247'_

_PANTALORD42069247 has renamed Shuichi Saihara 'Sherlock Von Schmitz'_

_Sherlock Von Schmitz_ : No.  
_Sherlock Von Schmitz_ : Change it.  _18:13_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : LOL NO   _18:14_

 _Sherlock Von Schmitz_ : Please.   _18:14_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Okay, okay  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Only because its youuu   _18:15_

_PANTALORD42069247 has renamed Sherlock Von Schmitz 'Shuichiiii♡'_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Better?   _18:16_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : It's an improvement.   _18:16_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : You're such an angry sounding texterrrr :((   _18:17_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I'm sorry? I promise I'm not angry at all.   _18:16_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Coolioo   _18:17_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : So, why did you message me?   _18:17_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : I missed you, obviously!!  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Why? Didn't you want me to contact you after asking you ever so kindly for your number?   _18:18_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Nono, not at all. I wanted to see you again too. It'd be nice to get to know you better. You proved to be great company earlier.   _18:20_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Awww  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Sherlock Holmes missed me  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : That makes me realllyyyy happpyyy  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Anyways! I came to ask you a veeeery important question!!!!   _18:23_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Ask away, Kokichi.   _18:23_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Are you busy tomorrow?   _18:24_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I have a meeting at 10 but after that no, I don't have anything planned. Why?  _18:24_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Good, good  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go out with me again  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : I promise it'll be super duper fun!! And you won't need to walk much at all!!  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Pleaaaaaaaseeeee ( T ヘ T )   _18:27_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I don't see why not.  
_Shuichiiii♡_ : When and where?   _18:28_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Tomorrow after your meeting! I'll pick you up after the meeting from your office  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : As for whereeee  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : That's a secreeeet ¯\\_(^.^)_/¯   _18:33_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Right. I'd love to come.   _18:34_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Coool!!! So! It's set in stone then!!  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : No backing out of this nowwww  _18:36_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I'll see you tomorrow.  _18:37_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Bye byeeee (∩ ✧ ω ✧ )⊃━☆ﾟ.*   _18:38_

_PANTALORD42069247 has gone offline._

Shuichi was happy that the boy from earlier wanted to see him again. It wasn't everyday that somebody made such an effort to build a friendship with him. He wasn't entirely sure why the thief would want to waste time on him - he was awkward and shy and not at all outgoing or social. He was grateful that Kokichi wanted to be his friend. He'd really have to pay the kind boy back sometime. He hadn't slept too well the night before, so he was incredibly tired. Both the adventurous day and heist last night had worn him out and he desperately yearned for a long night of uninterrupted sleep. He carefully carried his plate into the kitchen and dumped it, as well as his cutlery, into the sink. He'd wash it tomorrow, he told himself like he did every other day until he had no clean dishes. He stumbled into the bathroom, crutches in his aching hands and prepared himself for bed brushing his teeth, washing his face and hands and using the toilet. Afterwards, he pulled himself into his bedroom and leapt into bed, placing his crutches on the floor beside him. He expected to see Kyoko at the meeting in the morning. She had a lot to explain. Maybe she knew something about the case that no one else did, that would really be something. She was Kyoko Kirigiri - the country's greatest detective. She was bound to know more about this organisation the thief had been talking about. A lot more. As soon as his head hit the pillow, like a light, he was out.

-

"Do you understand what you're getting yourself into?"

"Of course I do! I want to see him smile! I'm giving him what he's always wanted!"

"Is this the path you truly want to take to achieve that?"

"No... But it's too late to turn back now. I have to do this."

"It's never too late, right?"

"No. You wouldn't understand. I've already hurt people. Abandoning my own mission now would ruin both of our schemes."

"So you've made your decision. You can't leave now, no matter what. Trying to leave will cost you your life."

"Listen. This is what is best for both of us. I get to do what I love doing best, and all of you will be able to complete your project quicker. It's a win-win situation for both of us."

"I suppose you're right, though I don't like this very much. The things that are happening behind closed doors because of you are terrible. You know that it's our number one rule to never kill somebody."

"Yeah, yeah. I know. But it's the only way. You just don't understand! I'm risking everything I have for this! You have nothing to lose if you fail because to the world you don't even exist!" 

"I don't have anything to lose? I have everything. Don't you dare assume anything about me or my life, little miss perfect. I could have had Shade do something horrible to dispose of you. Don't make us regret our decision."

"Tell me _all about_ your life if you claim it's so _brilliant._ "

"No. It's none of your business. If that's all you had to say then hang up, I have work to do. The next heist won't be long from now. I don't have time to waste on you."

"Actually, I _do_ have a request."

"Go on, before I change my mind."

"Don't tell your boss. He'll ruin everything."

"We won't. He doesn't know a thing about our scheme or how we're in a partnership with you."

"Very good. Well, Minerva, it's been nice talking to you over the phone rather than hacking my messages onto your screens."

"Mhm. Good luck on your side of the mission."

"You too. I'll guarantee success for all of us." She hung up the phone and smirked, throwing the phone onto the mascara stained bed. _Partnership._ Ha, _pathetic._ She was only using them. As soon as she got what she wanted, she planned to toss the nine of them aside. She would ruin every single plan they had and destroy every ounce of hope in their worthless souls. After all, if she were to be the mighty puppeteer pulling the strings, she had no time for alliances.

Fuck DICE. This world was _hers._

-

_**BZZT! BZZT! BZZT!** _

Shuichi woke up to the loud shrill screams of his alarm. He had forgotten he had set an alarm on his phone the night before. He figured that because he was so tired from the events of the past couple of days that he would likely sleep in. The high pitched terrorising whines from his phone were the only way he could ensure that wouldn't happen. Shuichi sat up tiredly. What time was it? He rubbed his eyes with the backs of his fingertips and stretched in place before swinging his legs off of the bed. He cautiously stood up. To his surprise, his leg didn't hurt too much to stand on and he was able to walk as long as he was being careful. Today would be a good day. He toddled over to his desk and turned the alarm off, thankful for the silence that followed. The time on the screen read 08:31. He had an hour and a half to get to the meeting. Kyoko would probably be there early, as usual. He still looked forward to seeing her though. Despite the fact that they were sworn enemies - two determined rivals fighting endlessly to be the detective on top - Shuichi thought that he could learn a lot about work just by being in her presence. 

He opened the slim drawer holding all of the calling cards and removed the hint for the last heist. His uncle said he needed to see it, so it was necessary to take it. What he didn't take was the card he had been given by the thief directly when he broke in. That card was untrustworthy, Shuichi had found, especially with 'IT'S A LIE' written on it. What Shuichi didn't know was what the lie was. The card? The next heist? Everything the criminal had said and done? The possibilities were endless, and Shuichi was beginning to lose his trust in the villain. If he was unsure of what the card meant, particularly when it sounded like a warning, he probably shouldn't show his uncle. Not just yet. It would cause problems for more people than just himself. Could Shuichi trust the thief if he couldn't trust the calling card? He didn't know. His phone began to bleep indicating a message notification. The detective quickly inspected the message he had received. 

_PANTALORD42069247 named the group 'WHASSUP PUSSAY BOII'  08:33_

_PANTALORD42069247 has named the group 'SORRY THAT WAS TOO MUCH'  08:34_

_PANTALORD42069247 has named the group 'YEET'   08:35_

It was just Kokichi. Shuichi remembered that they had made plans for that day, however he didn't know where they were going. He was excited to go out with his new friend and learn more about the boy. Shuichi unlocked his phone and decided to greet him. 

**YEET**

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Good morning, Kokichi.   _08:37_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Morninggggg  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Are you excited for todaaayyyyy   _08:38_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Actually, yes, I am.   _08:38_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Glad to hear it buddy!!!  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : It's gonna be  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : SO  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : MUCH  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : FUUUN   _08:40_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Haha, I believe you.  
_Shuichiiii♡_ : I can't wait to see what you have planned.   _08:40_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : You're gonna LOVE IT!!!! JUST WAAAATCH   _08:40_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I'm sure I will, Kokichi.  
_Shuichiiii♡_ : I need to get ready for the meeting now. I'll see you later.   _08:41_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Bye bye my favourite detectiveee~ ᴗ ‿ ᴗ    _08:41_

Shuichi put the phone down on his desk again and walked towards his wardrobe located in the corner of his room near the door. He changed his clothes, wearing a black and grey pinstriped jacket and trousers as usual, as well as a white buttoned up shirt underneath, along with black shoes to top off the outfit. He approached his phone again, as well as the card, he slipped both into his jacket pocket and went to the bathroom to fix himself up. Brushing his teeth and fixing his hair, he wondered about what Kokichi could've been planning. Yesterday he took them out to a park, and while it was beautiful, it was dangerous being there. It seemed to Shuichi that Kokichi was a thrill-seeking person who loved the excitement of doing dangerous things whilst being aware of the risk of being caught. Shuichi, on the other hand, was not like this at all. He cared about his reputation and the way other people saw him a lot. If one person had a bad opinion against him, it would be the end of his world. He wouldn't forgive himself for it. The detective hoped that Kokichi wouldn't drag him anywhere where he could get in deep trouble. He'd never hang out with the boy again. He left the bathroom with only ten minutes until nine. He decided that he'd just get to the meeting early, before Kyoko, to prove to her that he was a worthy detective.

He left his building, without his crutches, and made his way down to the quiet lobby. Whilst in the lift he had made a phone call for a cab to take him to his office. He could have walked the distance there, it was only a few blocks or so, but his leg ached to walk on for extensive periods of time. He hadn't heard back from Kyoko yet. He swiftly checked their text messages to find that he had been left on read minutes after she had received the message. Perhaps she had forgotten to reply? Or perhaps she just felt she didn't need to. It seemed likely. Kyoko didn't like to participate in conversations if she didn't need to, after all. She had all the information she needed, that was all she wanted to know. The black taxi pulled up outside of Shuichi's building after around ten minutes, and quickly got into the vehicle. He told the driver his location and immediately, the car began to move.

He arrived at his destination not too long later, paid the driver and got out. He stood in front of his uncle's office building and took a deep breath. It was just a meeting. A meeting like every single meeting before. So why was he so worried? He pulled the glass doors open and entered slowly. There was no one present in the lobby so the detective simply just walked straight into the interrogation room. Usually he would just wait at the reception desk and ring the small bell on top of it before waiting for his uncle to greet him, but today he just wanted to get it over with. There was nothing to be afraid of, after all. He'd been here a thousand times already throughout his lifetime. This place was like a second home to him. When he entered the room behind the front desk his uncle was looking through files which were stacked on the shelves lining the cold room. Without turning around, the older man dressed in his usual grey suit began to speak.

"Good morning, Kyoko. I thought you called in sick? You shouldn't push yourself to work so hard. Anyway, before Shuichi gets here-" He put the file away and turned around to see his nephew standing in the doorway. A mortified expression spread across his face. "Ah- Shuichi- My apologies. I didn't expect you to get here so early." He walked towards his desk and sat down on his comfy chair. "Please, sit down. Kyoko won't be here today."

Shuichi nervously paced towards the stools opposite his uncle's side of the desk and climbed onto the uncomfortable wood. "You heard from her?"

"Yes. She called this morning and told me she couldn't attend the meeting. She sounded really sick; her voice was shaky and weak. I blame the heat." The greying man narrowed his eyes as he stared at his desk, as if he were analysing what she had said.

"Oh... She didn't respond to my texts yesterday. She read them, though." Shuichi murmured. Did Kyoko just really dislike him? And Shuichi thought that maybe they'd begin to get along soon. He secretly did want to be her friend. 

"Well, all we know is that she can't be here for the meeting. I'll have to discuss the case with her privately once she feels better." He looked up at the younger boy again. He had decided to investigate this further. Kyoko took great care of herself. She rarely ever got sick, and if she did she still would find a way to do her job. It wasn't like her to be lazy. He wouldn't tell Shuichi this - it would likely cause him to panic or distract him from his current case. Right now, this was his own job. It was _his_ job to find Kyoko Kirigiri. "Did you bring the card?"

Shuichi fumbled around in his pockets for the clue, plucking it out and placing it on the desk. "Here. It's irrelevant now, so you're welcome to keep it if you wish."

The older man read the card, impressed that his nephew was able to solve it so quickly. "So Mahiru Koizumi's camera was their latest target, it seems? Do you know what they wanted to do with the camera?"

The thief had rambled on about using the stolen items to build something that would ultimately help him to rule the world. He had originally thought that he was maybe just joking considering world domination could never be achieved, but now he was starting to think otherwise. Who knows what he was capable of? He promised the criminal that his visit would remain a secret between the two, besides having the boy break in and not doing anything about it would make him look bad, so he decided not to say anything at all. "He said he needed the camera for a project of some sort, when we were on the rooftop together. Also, he said that Mahiru had taken a picture with him in it committing a crime. Mahiru hadn't seen this detail, but as no pictures could be deleted from the camera due to it being made that way, they needed to steal it in order to destroy the evidence."

"I see." He drummed his fingers on the table. "You seem a little on edge. Is something bothering you?"

Had Shuichi been caught? "A-Ah, no. I'm fine, r-really. I'm just worried about what the thief might do next. He's really unpredictable." He refrained himself from pulling his hat down over his eyes as this would make Shuichi's lie more obvious. He threaded his fingers together on his lap anxiously, wanting to change the subject. Every time he thought of the purple haired criminal, his heart rate picked up. Was it out of fear? The detective didn't know, but he knew it wasn't good.

The older investigator leaned forwards in his chair. "Are you sure? He didn't threaten you or anything, did he? Is he keeping you quiet about something? You have to tell me. What good is a detective that's being taken advantage of?" 

Shuichi instinctively leaned back to avoid his uncle's piercing gaze. "N-No! Of course not! You worry too much. I was just thinking about my encounter with him, that's all." _Please believe me..._

After a few seconds, the greying detective sat back in his chair. "Very well. I believe you. I don't think you would ever lie to me, after all. You're always so honest." There it was. _The guilt trip_. If Shuichi was lying, he would instantaneously admit to his lie due to the guilt being so unbearable. It was a tactic his uncle had always used since he was a child, and it had never failed. 

The dark haired boy felt his stomach begin to tie itself into knots. "I wouldn't lie. Let's just move onto another topic now." _Please... Before the guilt gets too much to cope with..._

The older man studied the face of his nephew carefully. "Of course. I'll be back in a minute. I'm going to make a copy of this card. I'll return it to you afterwards." Shuichi's uncle got up and left the room, closing the door behind him. 

Shuichi was alone. He had a creeping suspicion that his uncle knew that he had been lying. He never was a good liar, in all honesty. He couldn't admit to his lie this time however much he wanted to. He had made a deal with the thief to keep quiet about the break in, unless he wanted the thief to 'dispose of him' which was something the detective sincerely wanted to avoid. He wanted to trust the criminal, he really did, but he made it so difficult to understand him. 

His uncle reappeared into the room after a couple of minutes, a worried expression on his ageing face. "Shuichi. I sorry, I have to go. Something's come up that needs my attention immediately. Let me know if anything happens. We'll talk another time - good luck on your investigation." He spoke fairly quickly, dropping the card onto the desk in front of Shuichi and fumbling about with the files on the shelves. 

Shuichi put the calling card back into his pocket. "U-Um... Is everything okay?" 

His uncle paced speedily towards the door. "Fine, fine. You're welcome to leave whenever you please. I'll see you soon." And with that, he closed the interrogation room door behind him, leaving Shuichi alone once again. 

"Right." Shuichi got up and followed the older man out of the door. He'd better message Kokichi and tell him the meeting was over. He pulled his phone from his pocket and signed onto Powwow - the app they had been using to communicate rather than using text messages and scrolled through the app looking for the group Kokichi had made the night before. Powwow was a messaging app which allowed you to put up statuses as well as upload pictures and add friends. It wasn't too impressive, but everyone had the app. The only downside of the app was that you needed to sign up with your phone number, and if anyone input your number into the 'find contacts' search bar, anyone could find your account. Unless you accepted a message request, you couldn't see the phone number of the person messaging you. Shuichi guessed that this was what Kokichi was hoping for, the prankster he was. 

**YEET**

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Hey Kokichi, the meeting finished early.   _09:24_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : YAYY NOW WE CAN GO AND HAVE LOTS OF FUUUUN   _09:27_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Can you at least tell me where we're going now?   _09:28_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Noooope  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : It's a seeeecreeetttt  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Just trust me when I say you're gonna love it!!!   _09:30_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : I believe you, I promise.  
_Shuichiiii♡_ : Didn't you say you were going to come and get me?   _09:32_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Ya  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Had to rent a car though lol   _09:33_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Why?   _09:33_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : No reason really, my friends just wouldn't let me borrow their van  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Talk about trust issues, right??   _09:34_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Aha, right.  
_Shuichiiii♡_ : When are you going to get here?   _09:35_

 _PANTALORD42069247_ : Give me a moment  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : Stand in front of the building and count down from ten.  
_PANTALORD42069247_ : That's when the magic beginsssss (∩ ✧ ω ✧ )⊃━☆ﾟ.*   _09:38_

 _Shuichiiii♡_ : Alright, see you in a minute. _09:38_

Shuichi left the building and stood by the kerb. He began counting. _10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1..._ As if on cue, a dark blue car pulled over in front of the detective. The window was rolled down revealing Kokichi in his usual eccentric attire and checkered scarf. On his face were a pair of obnoxiously large (for his face) sunglasses and his signature smirk. 

He smacked the steering wheel earning a few loud honks. "Get in loser, we're going shopping!"

Shuichi climbed into the passenger seat beside his friend. "Shopping? That's where we're going?"

Kokichi's smile immediately faded. He pulled his sunglasses down to rest on the tip of his nose and held them in place with two fingers. "N-No! You don't get the reference! This just means that we need to watch Mean Girls together soon... And nope! We're not going shopping - shopping isn't _fun!_ " The violet eyed boy pouted childishly.

"So u-uh... Do you mind telling me where we're going now?" Shuichi fastened his seat belt and rolled down his own window.

The other boy's face brightened back up again. He pushed his sunglasses back onto his face and smacked his hands on the side of the steering wheel. "Never! It's a _secret!_ You'll see it when we get there!"

Shuichi smiled to himself. Kokichi really was trying his best for him even though they'd only met the day before. It was strange, however. No one had ever done something so kind for him before in his entire life. It made him happy. "Then what are we waiting for?" He beamed brightly. Their eyes met, expressions matching perfectly. "Let's go!"

Kokichi slammed his foot down on the accelerator. "You got it, detective!" The two sped off without warning and within seconds were zooming down the streets.

The journey was about an hours long and the duo had had a lot of fun together in the small vehicle. Despite Shuichi's motion sickness, to which Kokichi pulled over at a gas station and bought him a drink for, the car journey was fun and the two boys spent a lot of time laughing together. At some point, they'd even begun to sing together, though Shuichi being the shy boy he was sang a little quieter than Kokichi who was belting out the lyrics of every song like his life depended on it accompanied by small, yet dramatic, dance moves. Kokichi had begged him to join in but the detective refused - that was embarrassing. He was much happier just watching the smaller boy enjoy himself in the summer heat.

Soon enough, the view of roller-coasters and tall theme park rides could be seen out of the rolled down windows of the car. Shuichi gasped, shocked. He'd never been to one of _these_ before. His parents had never let him do fun things like visit theme parks or have fun days out because they were always so busy with work, so he ended up maturing too quickly and lacked a childhood and most of the thrilling experiences that came with it. "Kokichi- D-Don't tell me- You're not- You're not serious, are you?" His mouth hung open, eyes wide, unable to contain his surprise.

The boy in white chuckled nervously as he parked the car carefully. "You don't like it?"

"A-Ah- n-no! That's not it... I've just..." Wow, his new friend was going to think he was a loser. "I've never been to a theme park before. I know it's stupid but-"

"Me too." Kokichi put his hand on the taller boy's arm as if to console him. His touch was gentle and reassuring and Shuichi felt his inner anxiety fading away.

"Really? You haven't?" The detective asked, lifting his head to face the other boy who was unbuckling his seat belt.

"Nope. I've always really wanted to but I couldn't. My parents... I haven't had parents since I was maybe nine? It's been eleven years since then, it appears." His voice dropped to a low, quiet mumble which Shuichi couldn't quite understand. "Eleven years since I found my new family..."

"You haven't had parents for eleven years? W-What happened? Sorry for being so invasive, I'm just curious. Did they die?" Shuichi was aware he was treading on thin, thin ice but the way Kokichi phrased his answer was odd.

Kokichi opened the car door and removed his glasses, then he swung his legs out, turning his back to the detective. "You could say something like that." He left the car, removed his glasses and threw them on the car seat. Then he closed the door behind him. Shuichi fumbled to get out of the car before the other boy locked it and pocketed the keys. " _So,_ what's _your_ reason for never visiting a theme park?"

Shuichi didn't really feel comfortable sharing - his parents were a topic that he usually liked to keep to himself. They had quite a negative relationship and weren't nice people; they were neglectful and preferred to not be involved with Shuichi at all. The detective never felt good enough for his parents. All he ever wanted to do was make them proud. However, since Kokichi was willing enough to talk about what he assumed was his parents' deaths, he could open up to him a little bit. Just this once. It wouldn't hurt to, would it? "My p-parents were always busy with work. My mother is a screenwriter and my father is an actor. Everyone treats them like celebrities, but really, I don't think they're anything too special. They never had enough time for me. They left me with my uncle most of the time, but he was also extremely busy with work. The only people I really had were my uncle and my childhood friend Kaede Akamatsu. She was always there for me... The difference between my uncle and my parents is that he never left me out and took me to work with him. I wasn't alone with him. He's the one who influenced me to become a detective." He caught up to the purple haired boy and told his story. Not many people had heard it before, and he didn't know exactly why he was telling the boy he had met _yesterday_ this information, but something deep down wanted him to share it with Kokichi as if he could help solve these problems, or at least provide some support. 

Kokichi nodded understandingly. "So you never were able to enjoy your childhood because of all that weighing you down? Sounds rough."

"Y-Yeah... I just- I just want to be good enough for them, you know? I tried my best every day of my life - trying to make them appreciate me or acknowledge me at least. All they ever did was push me away and threw me aside like I didn't matter at all. I guess this is why I continued life as a detective... So I could finally prove myself to them. I just want to matter to someone, and I want them to be proud of me and love me like normal parents would, but they never will. A-And it just _hurts._ It really, really hurts." Shuichi was becoming emotional now, and this was when Kokichi decided to shut everything down. He didn't want to see Shuichi cry and he hated hearing about how he had suffered his whole life, and was still suffering at the moment, but he could see how easy to manipulate the boy was right now. He could simply mould the boy like putty in his hands if he just played along...

Kokichi drew Shuichi into a tight hug. A warm, tight hug to which Shuichi flinched at in surprise. "Shuichi, you're an amazing detective. You don't need anyone's approval - your parents' opinions don't matter. If they didn't realise that you were brilliant and a blessing before, I'm sorry, but they're not gonna do that now no matter what you do. It's best to just forget about them before they drag you down for the rest of your life. You can't continue living in fear that you're not good enough, because you are. You're remarkably intelligent, I mean come on - you're rivals with Kyoko Kirigiri and she wouldn't compete for the title of best detective for nothing! And you're also really attractive, pardon my French, so you don't need to hide yourself away from the world. You're kind, helpful, generous and compassionate - the best type of person there could be. All in all, I'd have to say that you're perfect. You're the only person who can't see that, Shuichi. _Open your eyes._ " He spoke quietly into the detective's ear, receiving a hug back. The words he spoke were the truth - pure and unblemished - but his intentions were the polar opposite. Dark and mischievous. 

The golden eyed boy felt as long as he was in Kokichi's arms, nothing could ever hurt him. He felt a burning sensation behind his nose indicating that tears were coming and he fought back against them as best as he could. What did he do to deserve someone like Kokichi? This boy had only walked into his life less than 24 hours ago and he was already becoming a pillar of emotional support for the detective. He knew that he shouldn't be so careless about spilling all of this information, but the words the boy in white had cooed to him ever so softly enveloped him in reassurance that everything was going to be okay. He was like an angel. Perhaps even his guardian angel. He hugged the boy back with more strength than before as he mumbled into his shoulder. "Th-Thank you.. Y-You're so k-kind to me. I'm so l-lucky to have had y-you so suddenly walk into my l-life."

A smirk crept onto the violet eyed boy's face. His voice was still gentle and warm. "I promise I'll never leave you, Shuichi. I'll always be here for you. You don't need to worry anymore." As soon as he felt the taller boy unconsciously pull him closer, he knew he had the boy right where he wanted him. _Shuichi was his._

Shuichi felt a few salty tears trickle down his face. He had been trying extremely hard to contain them so no one would ever see him in such a vulnerable state, but for some odd reason, crying felt so good. He couldn't contain the tears anymore and they were escaping silently down his pale face like raindrops racing down a window. He nodded into the smaller boy's shoulder before he pushed Kokichi away from him gently and pulled his cap down over his face, wiping his eyes with one hand. His cheeks were red and the detective tried his best to hide this. This whole scenario was embarrassing and humiliating - there was no need to drag it on. "Thanks... That really meant a lot." He stared at the ground idly.

Kokichi beamed kindly. "We shouldn't waste too much time here - we've got a theme park to explore! Ready to go?"

Shuichi nodded, wiping his eyes thoroughly. He wasn't going to cry anymore. Not in front of Kokichi. Not in front of anyone. "What can you do in there? Is it fun?"

Kokichi swiftly spun on his heels and began crossing the road towards the amusement park. "There's tons of things! You can eat tasty snacks, go on rides, play on arcade games and machines - whatever you like! Sound good to you?" He peered back over his shoulder where Shuichi was following behind quickly at his heels like a dog.

He smiled. "Y-Yeah. It sounds like a lot of fun. How much is it to get in? I'll-"

"I'll pay. For everything. Entry, food, drinks, you name it. You deserve a day off from the stress of life, after all. Let me treat you and just relax, okay?" 

Shuichi felt guilty for letting his new friend pay for him when he had the money himself, but he knew there was no way that he could convince the other boy otherwise. He was too stubborn. "I see. Thanks a lot. You're really nice."

Kokichi shrugged. "Nee-heehee~ It's not that big a deal... Let's stop the chit chat and get in before it gets too busy - there's no time to waste!" The pair hurriedly approached the gates of the amusement park, both boys brimming with excitement and anticipation. 

The baby blue fences surrounding the theme park were tall, smooth and metallic, with barbed wire spiralling around the top like a snake coiling itself around its pray, most likely to stop people breaking in. The open grey gate wasn't as tall as the fences, but still had it's good deal of barbed wire defending against the outside world. Upon entry, there weren't too many people around although it was still busy with queues lined up almost everywhere. Kokichi instructed Shuichi to wait over by the food court whilst he bought wristbands to use to go on the rides, to which he did, not really knowing what else he could do at the moment. After a few minutes of waiting silently and patiently, the purple haired boy skipped over happily with two red wristbands - one wrapped around his wrist and one in his hand.

"Shuichi! My favourite detective! Lookie here!" He waved the paper around in his face. "Gimme your wrist. I wanna put it on!"

Shuichi did what he was told and held out his right arm for Kokichi. "Thanks, but I could do this for myself, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah. I know. But didn't I tell you to just relax? You're injured and haven't had a too great a start to the day this morning, so please just let me do these little things for you." He gestured down the Shuichi's leg which was slightly raised off of the floor. Only the tip of his toes were touching the ground to provide support and balance as his leg hurt to apply too much pressure on.

"A-Alright. If you say so, but please remember that I'm not a baby." He lightly chuckled as he adjusted the position of the paper attached to his wrist.

"Nishishi~ You say the weirdest things sometimes. I guess that's what makes you interesting." Kokichi smirked and turned around quickly. "Alrighty! Let's go over... There!" He pointed towards a roller-coaster which climbed high into the sky, looping and turning on it's side whilst flinging all of the passengers about mercilessly. 

"That roller-coaster? I u-um... It _is_ safe, isn't it?" Shuichi nervously questioned. There was no way the detective would ever admit that he was afraid of heights even if he had confessed something so secret and personal to him earlier. He was sure he would be made fun of. 

Kokichi burst into a small fit of mocking laughter. "Of course it is! If it wasn't safe people wouldn't be using it. Listen to how safe and happy they are!" Both boys stayed silent as they listened to the loud screams echoing from the people on the ride. Shuichi shuddered. 

"They sound _scared,_ Kokichi." He limped forwards to stand beside the purple eyed boy who was still smiling brightly as if he was enjoying the sounds of terror being emitted from the screaming people. 

"They're not scared. They're having fun. It's the _thrill,_ Shuichi, they're _enjoying themselves._ " He turned his head to face the detective. "Wanna see how fun it is for yourself?" 

Putting on a brave face and taking a deep breath in, Shuichi nodded confidently. "Only if you're coming too. I mean, I'm not scared to go by myself - I just think that it's not fair for you to miss out on all the 'fun'." He teased, smirking back at the other boy. 

"Then it's settled." The purple haired boy grabbed the taller boy's wrist and dragged him towards the queue. The line lead up several flights of steps but luckily wasn't too long so it disappeared relatively quickly. Shuichi could feel himself growing more nervous by the second. 

"W-We're on next, huh?" He pulled his hat over his eyes to shield his face. He bit his lip anxiously. 

"Yup! I'm super excited!" Kokichi clasped his hands together happily before noticing that the detective wasn't expressing the same anticipation. "You okay? Wait a second... Don't tell me..."

Shuichi chuckled nervously. _He knows?_ "Don't tell you w-what?" 

"You're afraid of heights, aren't you?" 

_He knows._ "Haha, how'd you guess?" The shame Shuichi felt was overwhelming. What sort of detective was afraid of heights? That was just pitiful. 

"Well, for a start," Kokichi lifted the detective's cap from his eyes and placed it neatly back on his head. "you're trembling like a leaf, stumbling over your words, and you covered your face like you always do when you're anxious."

"You've _noticed_ the hat thing?" Shuichi was wide eyed and embarrassed. 

"It's not like you _tried_ to hide it." He put his hand on the detective's arm reassuringly, just like he had done earlier that day in the car. "Listen, you don't need to be afraid. If you want to scream on the roller-coaster then go for it, no one's going to judge you. _They're_ all screaming, so what makes you so different? You're human too. And a fear of heights is completely reasonable. No one would want to fall from such a distance, so don't beat yourself up over it 'kay?" He beamed and moved forwards in the queue, removing his hand from the taller boy's arm. 

"Y-Yeah. You're right. Thanks." Shuichi looked to where Kokichi was standing. They were accepting people onto the next run. "O-Oh. We're going on now."

Kokichi smiled enthusiastically. "Yup! You ready to go?"

Shuichi smiled back, though it was forced. Anyone could see straight through it. "I guess. I just hope it'll be fun."

"It will! Come on, we're getting on now!" Kokichi scanned his wristband on the reader and skipped to the back of the train, sitting in the back seats of an empty car. "Here! I've heard the back is the best!"

Shuichi scanned his wristband too and hurried to sit beside Kokichi at the back of the ride. "Really? Well, you know best." He sat on the left of the smaller boy, who was looking down over the side of the train through the yellow tracks at all of the tiny ant-like people below.

"Mhm, I do. You scared still?" He leaned back in his seat, tearing his vision away from the people enjoying their day.

The detective shuffled in his seat. "A little bit, but I'll be alright." He smiled nervously, but that small smile conveyed so much bravery and courage. Kokichi grinned, he liked that.

"If you _are_ still scared and feel like you're gonna fall out, you can always hold my hand. I promise I won't let you go. You're safe." One may think that the violet eyed boy in white was just teasing the taller boy, but he wasn't at all. It was an act of pure kindness. He held his left hand out to Shuichi. 

Hesitantly, the dark haired boy reached out to take Kokichi's hand in his own. He looked away, a rosy red dusting his cheeks lightly. Whether he was just embarrassed or flustered was unknown, but Shuichi knew it had something to do with the boy beside him. "I won't let go either. I promise."

Hand in hand, the boys shared a gentle look of serenity before the staff member operating the ride began to speak. "Keep your hands and feet in the car at all times. Do not lift the bar in front of you until the ride has come to a complete stop. Do not stand up at any given point during the ride. And one final rule which is the most important of all: remember to have fun!" After he had finished speaking, he disappeared inside his box, escaping from the eruption of cheers coming from the passengers on the train.

"Here we go." The purple haired boy muttered. Shuichi nodded slowly, bracing himself for the worst. 

And then they were moving.

Shuichi's heart burst out of his chest when they began to ascend towards the sky, higher and higher and higher. Climbing up and up closer to the sky by the millisecond, the sun shining blindingly. Up, up, up. _Okay, it's not too bad._ Suddenly the ride came to a stop at the peak of the tracks. A fraction of a second later and the train had pushed itself over the top and was descending at an alarmingly fast rate. Shuichi couldn't help but squeeze Kokichi's hand tighter, clinging desperately onto his hat with his free hand. Screams of exhilarated horror fled from the detective's mouth at every twist and turn the train made, and being at the very back wasn't helping a bit. While Shuichi was screaming for his life, Kokichi, on the contrary, was laughing his head off, his free hand in the air. How was Kokichi _not_ terrified right now? Once again the ride was sloping upwards towards the sky, but not as high as when the ride began. It had slowed down significantly, adding to the tension bubbling in Shuichi's chest. The detective was panting, wide eyed, trying to calm himself down.

Kokichi looked at the face of his friend, who looked at least fifty different shades of petrified, and held his hand tighter in his own. "Don't panic. Don't be afraid. Just calm yourself down, let loose and you'll enjoy yourself." His words were drowned out by the laughs and cries of others on the ride, but Shuichi still heard the message loud and clear. 

Through gritted teeth, the dark haired boy sharply inhaled and released a shaky breath. "Calm down. Let loose. Got it." He closed his eyes knowing what was going to come next - they had reached the peak of the second rail hill. Opening them again, they began to fall spiraling round and round in a dizzying assault. This time Shuichi didn't let out any aghast screams. He _laughed._ Kokichi was right - sometimes it was better to let go. His hand was still tightly gripping Kokichi's and he wasn't about to let go for a second, even when the train stopped back where the ride had started. He smiled, proud of himself for actually being able to accomplish that. 

"Shuichi? How was that?" He had noticed that the other boy was still holding onto his hand with all the strength he possessed, but he didn't plan to say anything about it until he had noticed. 

Shuichi looked dumbfounded. He was speechless, wide eyed and mouth hanging open. "Th-That was... _So amazing!_ Let's go again! Or a different ride! Come on, we've gotta try everything!" He leapt out of the car with the strength of a lion full of newfound energy, letting Kokichi's hand go in the process. _Today was going to be a great day._

"See? I knew you could do it! You're not as weak as you think you are. You can do anything if you really believe you can." He followed Shuichi off of the ride and exited down the slope back towards the rest of the theme park. "Where to next, buddy?" He figured by letting Shuichi pick what they did, he would be able to learn more about how the detective thought. Today was going to be a good day. He planned to make a lot of progress in analysing the boy's behaviour; it would prove helpful in the long run. 

Shuichi looked around hastily, eyes searching for something that he would most definitely enjoy. "That one." He pointed towards one of the attractions in the far corner from where they were standing. There was a black canopy covering it and its neon purple interior underneath, along with the flashing beams of fluorescent lilac light flaring like lasers in the ceiling. 

Kokichi stood on his tiptoes to be able to see what the taller boy was so fascinated about. "Ah- you mean the bumper cars, right?" 

Shuichi nodded enthusiastically. He truly felt as if he was making up for the childhood he had missed out on - nothing could snap him out of his good mood now. He was immune to the negativity surrounding him and it felt _wonderful._ "Yeah. The one with all of the small car looking things. I want to have a go, if that's okay with you?" 

"You're on!" The boy in white narrowed his eyes at the taller boy, making it official that they were going to have a thrilling competition. "Race you there!" Kokichi sped off, Shuichi following behind in a mixture of a sprint and a hop trying to keep as much pressure off of his leg as possible. It was healing, but it still _did_ hurt. 

"You're going down, Kokichi!" He shouted at the boy running through the crowds. Neither of them had been on bumper cars before, so this was new territory to the both of them. Something about the pair of them being so clueless and inexperienced made it more fun than Shuichi would have ever expected. He was glad Kokichi had invited him out for a second time, the boy was energetic, brimming with confidence, generous - everything the detective himself wanted to be. He wanted to get to know him a lot better. To become close friends. Even with all the stress from the phantom thief case building up inside of him, he felt as though he could be at peace with the world and not have to worry about anything at all. All the tension in his body seemed to melt away and for the first time in his entire life, he felt as if everything was perfect. Everything was as it was meant to be. 

After the rousing round of bumper cars, the two buoyant boys rushed onto as many other rides as possible. First, the drop tower, where Shuichi could've sworn that his stomach was doing uncomfortable backflips which made him feel sick whereas Kokichi was giggling as much as his small lungs could handle - both of them still loved it, however much it shook up the butterflies in their stomachs. Next up was a pendulum ride designed like a boat which swung the passengers back and forth, higher and higher each time. Every time the boat swung forwards, the relaxing summer breeze would comb through the boys' hair, pulling them into a wonderful massage. They both giggled at the odd feeling in their stomachs from being tossed around, not completely hating it at all. Shuichi was having fun and enjoying himself, that's all that mattered to the pair of them. 

After they had regained their balance, Kokichi and Shuichi had approached a sign showing a map of the whole grounds; this way it was easier to see what they could go on. All the rides were ranked with a certain colour - blue for calm, green for exciting and red for thrilling. Kokichi had suggested to go on the 'River Caves' ride, which was listed as a red ride, but Shuichi wasn't too sure about it. 

The purple haired boy repeatedly tapped the map where the ride was located, his short nails making contact with the plastic. "But look! It sounds so fun from the description! 'Riders travel slowly on two-passenger boats along an artificial river through decorated tunnels and caves on a spooky horror ride.' Doesn't that sound _cool_?" He turned to face the taller boy and stared straight into his dazzling golden orbs. "I mean, if you don't like horror then I guess you don't have to... But I'd really like to..." He feigned a pout which was convincing enough for the detective to believe. Not wanting to upset the boy, Shuichi agreed. 

"Hey- no- don't be upset! I'll do it, okay? I'm just not too keen on the sound of water rides. I'll go as long as I don't have to get wet." He stroked his hair behind his ears hoping that this would be enough to cheer the smaller boy up. It was his first time at an amusement park too, after all. He just wanted to have fun and what type of person would Shuichi have to be to not let him have _that_? 

Kokichi fist pumped cheerfully. "Hell yeah! This is gonna be awesome!" He turned back to face to map to memorise it, as well as the route they would have to take. "Okay so... We're here... Which means we'll have to take a left when we reach the swings, keep going straight until we pass the food court and then turn right when we pass the photo booth. Seems easy enough to remember, right?" He turned to the detective who was focusing on remembering his way around the grounds.

"Uh... Oh! Right. Okay I've got it. Let's go." The dark haired boy backed away from the map and headed off towards the swing ride. Shuichi had wanted to go on it before, until he realised that he'd probably lose his hat due to it being compulsory for both hands to be on the handlebars, and he wasn't willing to take it off and leave it on the ground with the ride operator, so he just picked a different ride to go on. Kokichi didn't seem too bothered by this, but he didn't want the boy to have the same problem with the majority of the rides. It would just cause unnecessary problems. The boy in white refused to say anything to him about it though, he'd already heard about how the hat was special to him before, and if Shuichi wasn't willing to talk about it then, he surely wasn't going to now. He may have opened up to him earlier, but Kokichi definitely wasn't going to push his luck. Shuichi would tell him in his own time. No rush. 

"Cool! River Caves, here comes Kokichi Ouma!" Kokichi chased after the detective who had already begun walking towards the next attraction.

It was already noon and the sun in the clear blue sky was blazing down on the boys passing by many other groups of people enjoying their Tuesday out. The scent of candy floss and popcorn wafted through the air as the boys passed by several stands where people were selling delicious snacks and mouthwatering treats. So far the day had gone well. The two had grown a little bit closer in only a few hours and Shuichi saw them actually becoming good friends in the future. Although, he still had one question he felt like he needed to ask. "Kokichi?"

"Yeah?" The smaller boy laced his hands behind his head casually and turned his face by a fraction to look towards the detective. They passed the swings and headed in the direction of the food court. 

"Why'd you decide to take me to a theme park?" He turned his head completely to face the shorter boy who appeared surprised by the sudden question.

"Why do you ask?" His surprised expression quickly changed back to his usual careless grin as he evaded Shuichi's question.

Shuichi took note of these expression changes, though didn't voice his concern. Clearly, there was some underlying meaning that Kokichi was hiding. "I don't really know, to be honest. I was just wondering because today's been really fun, and this isn't usually the type of thing you do for someone you met yesterday, if you get what I mean."

Kokichi remained silent as if he was carefully selecting the words to use in his response. "It's a tough question... I guess I asked you out with me just as an excuse to get to know you better. Amusement parks are always supposed to be good fun whatever age you are, so I thought 'hey, why not?' Also... I just wanted to visit a theme park myself since I had a day free. I never expected that it would be your first time visiting one too. I'm glad you're enjoying yourself so far though, that makes me super duper happy!" He beamed warmly, a smile so kind and gentle that Shuichi could tell that every word was the absolute truth. "We need to go this way now, Shuichi. Turn right."

"O-Oh thanks." The duo continued navigating towards the River Caves ride as they spoke. "Well, thanks a lot for doing this. No one had ever done something so kind for me before. I swear I'll pay you back for everything in full later!"

Kokichi chuckled childishly. "Nah, don't bother. I don't need anything in return. I just wanna be your friend, Shuichi. Nishishi~ The only way you can pay me back is by coming out with me again soon, if you're that fussed about repaying debt."

"Next time I'll be the one inviting you out, Kokichi. I'll try and make it as fun as possible, though I doubt I'll be able to top an amusement park, haha." Shuichi looked away, averting his gaze from the boy walking beside him.

"Whatever you do, I'll appreciate it. Truth is, no one has ever done anything like this for me either. I have a few friends but we never go out together to have fun." Kokichi donned a joyful smile, yet his sorrowful tone showed his true feelings towards the matter. Shuichi couldn't help but feel bad for him. Was the real reason Kokichi invited him out just to spend time with another person because he had nobody else to spend quality time with? Was he just a lonely child underneath his mask of happiness and lies? Shuichi couldn't help but think that there was more to Kokichi and his past than he let on...

"That just makes me want to do something for you in return even more! I'll try my best to make you happy." Shuichi smiled, his friendly eyes gazing into Kokichi's.

Kokichi suddenly stopped walking, to which Shuichi responded to by stopping as well. "That's really sweet of you, my dearest detective. I'm not expecting you to do anything for me at all in return, but I'm looking forward to it. Oh, we're here by the way." Kokichi pointed to his left. A huge wooden sign reading ' _Beware - River Caves Ahead: Enter at your own risk..._ ' stood tall and proud in front of the attraction. "Let's queue up while the line is still short! If we hurry we might be able to get on on the next turn!" His excitement was almost contagious as Shuichi felt himself becoming eager to hurry onto the ride too. 

Unfortunately, this excitement was short-lived as Shuichi's phone suddenly began to ring and Kokichi burst out laughing at his ringtone, failing to hide his amusement. "Go on ahead without me, I'll catch up after I take this."

"Okie dokie! Make it quick! The line is already getting shorter as we speak!" Kokichi dashed off immediately to save a space for himself and the detective in the queue.

Displayed on Shuichi's phone screen were the words ' _Incoming Call_ '. Below, the words ' _Private number_ '. Why were they hiding who they were? Was it just a prank call? Hesitantly, he answered the call and pressed the device to his ear. If it was a prank caller, he would get it over with quickly and return to his day. "Hello? Who is this?"

He was greeted with a deep, gravelly voice, almost nightmare inducing, sounding as if a voice changing software was being used to hide the speaker's identity. The words they spoke sent chills down the detective's spine. "Good afternoon, Shuichi Saihara."

He froze. How did they know his name? "Who are you? Why are you calling me?"

"Who I am doesn't concern you. I don't exist in the real world, anyway. What does concern you though... Well, that's something entirely different, you see." The way they spoke was sly, slow and sinister like a snake.

"H-Huh? What do you mean?" His entire body was littered with goosebumps, every hair on his body standing up.

"Time is running out, detective."

"What?"

"She doesn't have very long left."

"Who are you talking about? Is this just another prank call? I don't have the time for this today. I'm really busy." Shuichi snapped. This joke wasn't very funny.

"I don't understand why you would assume this was a prank call. Can't you tell we're very, _very_ serious? Unless you want to see your precious friend alive again, you'll listen to us."

"Who are you talking about? What precious friend? Are you talking about Kaede?"

"Hahaha~ Am I? You tell me. You're the detective, after all. I hope you haven't forgotten that little detail."

Shuichi could feel his heartbeat racing in his chest, adrenaline pumping through his body like pistons. "Whoever it is... _Please_ don't hurt her. What is it you want me to do?"

The voice on the other side of the phone let out a boisterous laugh. "I'm glad you're finally playing along."

"Please just tell me what you want."

"Oh? That's simple. I want you to trade her life for your own, Shuichi Saihara. Give yourself to us or _I'll take her life and make you watch._ "

Shuichi was speechless. Give himself up for her? He didn't even know who she was. Anxiety bubbled in his stomach, clawing its way up his throat, as he thought about the possibilities of the victims. _K-Kaede?_

A familiar childish voice increased in volume as the owner of it raced over. "Shuichi! We missed the next ride! Hang up and line up with me." It was then he noticed the look of distress on Shuichi's face. "Is something the matter?"

Shuichi hung up the phone. **_A bad idea._** "N-No. Nothing. Let's go." He slipped the phone back into his pocket after muting it and blocking calls from any private numbers. Any more calls like this and the boy was sure he would break. He and Kokichi walked to the back of the line which was growing longer by the minute. He didn't know what to do. Should he call for help? Investigate himself? No. There was nothing he could do. If it had been confirmed to be Kaede, he would have handed himself over without hesitation. Her life was more important than his. She was so innocent and pure, she would never deserve something as horrific as this.

If this were to be his last day on Earth, then he'd make full use of it. He would make it count. After all, he was a worthless chess piece. They moved him as they pleased, and he wasn't able to do anything about it. It was far too late. They had him trapped.

_**The beginning of the end of his life had officially begun.** _


	9. An Unofficial First Date (2/2)

Putting the old fashioned, black telephone back onto its stand above the rotary dial, the blonde man dressed in white half-grinned. His white jacket was neat and didn't display a single crease or tear in the fabric like the other members. A white strap crossed horizontally across his chest and the tops of his arms underneath his checkered scarf whilst two other straps clung around his thighs, the ends dangling off the back, resting on the arm chair. He looked up to Shade who was standing in front of the desk he was sitting at, seemingly staring off at the wall in deep thought. As soon as he heard the phone being put down, he snapped out of his daze and turned to face his colleague. 

"Smile, status report. Is he going to comply, or are we going to have to use force?" His hands were still in his pockets as usual, but his arms appeared as if they were made of stone - incredibly tense. 

Smile was definitely not wearing a smile at this point. He stroked his goatee with his thumb anxiously as he crossed his legs under the table, the front half of the bottoms of his black boots touching the carpet. "He doesn't seem to know how to answer. He hung up without saying anything. Oh, that reminds me... Where's the boss, by the way?" 

Shade looked up in thought, moving just his eyes. "He said he had work to do which would help the plan run smoother. Why?" 

Smile pressed his lips together tightly before responding. "I could have sworn that I heard his voice just now. He was calling for the detective." He gritted his teeth together inside his mouth and inhaled silently through his teeth. Shade would probably be angry at him or the boss, and he wanted to at least be prepared for a frustrated lecture. 

Shade's eyes steeled as he removed his hands from his pockets. They were pale due to never being exposed to sunlight. Not only that, but they were incredibly unblemished and flawless - the type of hands one would dream of having. He brought his right wrist up to his mouth and clicked a button on the side of his watch. "Minerva. Are you receiving?" 

It was only a moment before the mature voice of said woman responded. "Yes. What do you need, Shade? I'm busy preparing for the next heist." 

"Would you be able to track the location of the boss right now?" Shade, although he kept his cool on the outside, was panicking. If the thief was with the detective right now then he would most likely be caught. There was a huge chance that he would connect the dots and capture the criminal; if this happened DICE would have to disband. It wasn't worth the risk.

"One minute." There was a moment of silence from the girl as the only noises heard were her fingers tapping away at the keyboard quickly. She cleared her throat. "He doesn't have his watch on his person. It's in his room."

Shade furrowed his eyebrows and pulled his mouth into a frown. "What about his phone? Any gadgets? Anything to locate him?"

"Hold on." More typing. "Nope, nothing. He's got his phone but his location has been blocked off from us."

Shade swore under his breath. "Can you work around it?"

"Yes. I can hack into his phone and track him."

A frustrated frown transformed into a sinister smirk. "Perfect. How quickly can you do it?"

The girl laughed. "Already done, sir. Don't underestimate me like the boss seems to. He's at an amusement park apparently. Upon further inspection, he's quite far away. Wasn't he supposed to be working?"

The high ranked member thought about the scenario momentarily. "He's with the detective at an amusement park..." He sighed irritably. "Put the plan on hold. We can't risk the boss catching onto our secondary scheme. The detective may have told him about the phone call."

"Yes sir. I'll report to the rest of the organisation immediately." Without waiting for a reply, Minerva hung up.

Shade turned back to Smile who was sitting patiently and quietly at the desk. "Thank you for informing me. If we did not know, we would have been caught straight away."

Smile stood up and grinned. "Eh, it's no big deal really. Just doin' my job." He shrugged. 

"You still did well. I have something else to ask of you, by the way." Shade put his hands back into his pockets and stepped closer to the desk. 

"What's up?" 

"Later on today, before the detective returns home, I want you to leave a _special gift_ at his door. Take Aergia, Pigtails or Vigour with you - they all know where he lives." Shade flashed a toothy grin, cold and venomous. 

"Understood. I'll get it done as soon as I can. I've gotta go to work now, see ya. I'll bring some good shit home." Raising one hand to say goodbye, the blonde man left the room leaving the second in command member by himself. He would talk to the boss when he returned about why the hell he was at a theme park anyway, with or without the detective. Though being with the detective was also something Shade was extremely displeased about. If he told the boss about the phone call, he would likely investigate it himself. He couldn't let that happen. 

If you're going to betray your closest friend, you'd better do it _right._

-

Shuichi stood, dejected, beside Kokichi in the line for the River Caves. The smaller boy had been yapping away energetically for the past god knows how long whilst Shuichi pretended to listen. He was far too focused on the phone call. Who the hell would call him like that? It was sick. Prank calls weren't funny to him to start with, but this just took it to the next level.

"Hey! Are you even listening?" The purple haired boy tugged on Shuichi's sleeve. He pouted childishly. 

Shuichi looked up from the wooden walkway beneath their feet. "Hm? Oh, y-yeah. Of course."

The boy sighed. "Is the phone call upsetting you?" Shuichi shrugged and averted his gaze away from the shorter boy who was edging closer on the tips of his toes. "That's a yes then... Who called you? What did they say?" 

Shuichi waved his hand dismissively in front of the smaller boy's face, eager to put an end to the interrogation. "Nothing. They were just one of those annoying people asking if I was in an accident that wasn't my fault, that's all... The only accident I've been in recently was answering that phone call." He raised his eyebrows for a split second whilst making his smug remark. Shuichi didn't want to tell Kokichi anything - it could put him in danger if the detective got him involved and, in his eyes, Kokichi was a sweet, kind boy who would never do anything so wrong to receive horrid threats and scares like he had just experienced. If he dragged Kokichi into this mess he would _never_ forgive himself. 

Unfortunately for Shuichi, Kokichi was able to sniff out lies equally as well as he was able to sniff out exactly where the panta was kept in a store. "Oh? Is that so? Because from the look on your face, the way you're shifting around nervously even though you don't realise it, and the fact that you can't keep eye contact with me, it seems like Mr Shuichi Saihara here is telling me lies." He grinned, closing the distance between them so he was able to lower his voice into a sly whisper. 

"I-It's not a lie... It's really nothing you need to worry about." Kokichi surveyed his face analytically for a few moments before dropping back onto his feet and hopping away from the detective. _Thank goodness..._

"Okay! If you say so, I believe you! If you're so sure that there's no problem, I won't pry. But if you ever need someone to talk to, remember you'll always have me on your side!" He flashed an innocent smile earning a nervous half-smile in return from the taller boy. Kokichi wasn't an idiot. It was more than obvious that Shuichi had been threatened, he just wanted to hear it from the detective first hand to confirm that his assumptions were correct. He would find whoever was doing this to Shuichi - they were just in the way of his plan and he couldn't have that, could he? Right now, however, his main focus was distracting Shuichi. This day was for them to get to know each other better, perhaps even bond one-on-one, after all. He was going to take advantage of that, and he had already thought of a plan. 

Shuichi simply nodded and faced forwards. "Ah. We're on next."

"Yeah, let's go. It'll be fun!" Kokichi paced ahead, a spring in his step, and scanned his wristband on the reader. Shuichi followed behind quickly, repeating his actions and joined him boarding the ride. The boats were small, only containing two seats - it explained the long queue which took a while to decrease in length. The brown watercraft wobbled in the narrow artificial river as the boys climbed in carefully. Once seated, Kokichi shuffled over to the right side of the boat allowing the shaken detective to sit comfortably to his left.

Shuichi had previously been looking forward to the ride, however now he was just unsettled and startled. He couldn't get his mind off of the heinous words the distorted voice had spat venomously at him. They had asked him to hand himself over to them in exchange of the girl's life. But who were they referring to? His uncle was right - what good _is_ a detective that's being taken advantage of? It was probably a lie just to throw him off. Yeah, just a lie. A lie... His eyes snapped open. The phantom thief? No... That would be impossible, right? He hoped that was the truth. Was this what the card was referring to? It was a possibility, but too early to confirm if his theory was correct. "When does this thing start?" His voice came out as a mere whisper, but Kokichi heard well enough. 

"Give it a minute, they're probably making sure there's no one hiding inside the ride outside of the boats. I'd just _hate it_ if anyone dared to jump out and scare you." He pouted teasingly at that last part, putting together the last part of his scheme. He needed to distract Shuichi, so a distraction was what the detective was going to get. The purple haired boy smiled to himself slyly as he mapped out lies and ideas in his head, preparing the idyllic approach to his plan - he already had a plot, and it was going to be _perfect._

Shuichi shrugged. "Ah, right. Makes sense. It could be dangerous for people to be in there."

Kokichi laced his fingers together behind his head. "Yup! Safety first."

The operator of the ride began to speak, her voice loud and hoarse. "Welcome to the River Caves! Please keep your hands and feet inside the boat at all times. Don't climb out of the boat and don't touch the water. But be careful... It's said that those who journey into the caves never return... Have fun!" The woman pressed a few buttons on her control panel and the watercraft began moving slowly into the darkness ahead. It was at this point where Kokichi would put his plan into action. 

The duo were plunged into near pitch blackness as eerie music began to echo around them, slowly sneaking up the walls swiftly like a sly assassin ready to rip through their lives. At first there was nothing but the lack of light which stole their vision and the creepy tantalising music ringing in their ears upon the water which cradled and rocked them gently, until a loud crash interrupted the silence. A flash of light followed by a thunderous roar of crackling briefly lit up the cave. The makeshift lightning seemed to tear a bright jagged rip in the inky black canvas of the darkness like paper - a brilliant flash which flickered and died as quickly as it appeared. The crashing of thunder rolled across the ceiling, clearly being played from several speakers around the boys to appear as if it were echoing, but was still frightening, seeming as if it were cracking at the air. The impetuous rumbling caused the smaller boy of the two to jump with a small shriek, grabbing helplessly onto both Shuichi's arm and leg on his left. 

Shuichi turned to face him, temporarily knocked out of his panicked daze. He could feel Kokichi trembling feebly as he ducked his head down clutching tightly onto the detective, his right hand on his right arm and his left hand on the taller boy's leg. "A-Are you okay?" The detective genuinely was concerned for the smaller boy - he wasn't acting like this before. 

Kokichi lifted his head allowing the detective to see his illuminated face in the dimly lit tunnel and let out a deep breath he had been holding in. "Y-Yep just p-perfect!" He smiled shakily up at the detective who could see that Kokichi wasn't okay at all. The look on his face displayed worry and fear - they definitely did not match his words. Hell, even his voice betrayed him as he stuttered and his voice shook. 

Another furious growl of thunder resonated through the cave, shaking Kokichi to his core. He yelped again and clung on tighter than before, pressing his head into his arm. Shuichi gasped silently in realisation. "Kokichi? Are you afraid of thunder?" He felt the boy nod slightly into his shoulder. It was only a fraction of a movement, but he still felt it. "It's okay Kokichi, it's not real."

"I-I know it's not r-real! B-but it's still loud!" Another crash of thunder. Kokichi whimpered and leaned further into Shuichi, slowly inching his left hand higher dragging it up the detective's thigh. 

Shuichi immediately took note of this, paying attention to every movement the other boy made. He was beginning to feel his heart race, uncomfortable about the position they were in, but he was sure Kokichi didn't mean anything by it so he didn't say anything. On the contrary, he became fidgety, even if he didn't realise it, which indicated to the other that he was uneasy. "You must be really scared then, h-huh?" Kokichi nodded. "Is there... Uh... Anything I can do to help you?" Another nod. "Tell me."

Kokichi lifted his head to Shuichi's ear and whispered innocently. "P-Please... Could you hold me close until we get past this bit? I r-really can't deal with thunder." The question startled Shuichi, Kokichi's hot breath ghosting his ear. Hold him close? Well, he couldn't really say no, could he? He didn't want Kokichi to think he was mean or enjoyed seeing him in such a petrified state so... Why not? 

Cautiously, Shuichi snaked his right arm around Kokichi's shoulders and pulled him closer than before. He used his thumb to occasionally rub the smaller boy's shoulder each time he jumped at the crashing of the rolling thunder and rocking of the watercraft on the artificial river. "Like this?" 

Kokichi nodded. "Yeah... You're so nice. This is perfect." His voice dropped to an inaudible mumble. "Just like you, Mr Detective."

A state of peace and relaxation came over the investigator. Despite the creepy music and loud sound effects attacking their ears in a swift never-ending assault, Shuichi was quite comfortable. Besides the hand on his thigh which, to his dismay, was still stalking higher, he liked how warm Kokichi was snuggling into his side. "That's good. You don't have to be afraid." His voice was quiet as he responded to the smaller boy, not wanting to scare him with the noise. Unknowingly, his hand found itself creeping up to the violet eyed boy's hair where it began tangling itself in the silky locks, stroking his hair gently. Kaede had done it to him thousands of times during panic attacks or breakdowns; it always helped him to calm down and relax, so Shuichi thought he would do the same to Kokichi. The sound of water, the low rumbling of the machinery pushing the boat along and the sound of Kokichi's almost steady breathing were gentle and soothing. He could feel Kokichi's heart beating through his fingertips, it was fast and rapid - the boy really was afraid. Shuichi was afraid, too. The phone call still played on his mind, the words sharply carving doubt and regret into his conscience. He was glad Kokichi was with him. Kokichi could lighten any mood. He'd been taking care of Shuichi all day, so now was his turn to pay him back. 

Another sharp turn in the river caused the boat to shake. A horrifying scream echoed around them followed by the sounds of metal slapping on skin brutally. Loud, desperate shrieks upon more petrifying screams poured from the audio, slowly dying out with the sounds of assault. Both boys' eyes shot wide open. This was horrible. One may wonder why something so cruel would be included in a ride, however it _was_ rated as thrilling and even had a warning on a sign outside. If Shuichi had known, he definitely would not have agreed to come on here with Kokichi, no matter how much he wanted to try it out. It wasn't a surprise at all why children weren't allowed on. 

"I don't like this, Shuichi. It's scary." Kokichi buried his head into Shuichi's side. His shoulders began to shake as he emitted small whimpering sounds. 

Shuichi looked down. Was he... _Crying?_ "Kokichi..." He whispered, loud enough for the other boy to hear. "Are you alright?" Kokichi shrugged. "Hey- Kokichi- Don't cry, it's okay. It's all sound effects, none of this is real." When he got no response, Shuichi knew he had to do something himself. "Come here, you." He pulled the smaller boy into a tight hug, resting his head upon the other's. Kokichi's snivelling seemed to stop as he brought one hand up to hold onto Shuichi's. 

"I-I'm f-fine." He shuffled around a bit to get comfier, snuggling under the taller boy's arms. 

Shuichi hadn't really realised what he was doing until now. It seemed a bit odd to him to be in this position with someone he had met the day prior, and on top of that, Kokichi was another boy. He had no problem with people liking the same gender, in fact it was none of his business who or what people liked as long as they weren't hurting anybody. He was just worried about what people might think of him if he were caught doing something like this. Everyone would surely think he was weird or strange for doing this sort of thing - it wasn't the type of thing friends do on their first time out together. Shuichi was already under enough stress as it was, and thinking about what other people thought of him only made his head ache and his heart hurt. Sighing heavily, he decided to drop the subject and relax. It was dark and they were alone, just the two of them. No one would see them, right? Then it shouldn't matter. Closing his eyes, Shuichi allowed himself to calm down and enjoy the present; just himself and Kokichi. "I know. Everything's fine... I think its almost over anyway. We can get something to eat afterwards."

"About to finish? Okay!" Kokichi sat up quickly, pulling himself out of Shuichi's arms and wiped his eyes with the back of his right hand, his left hand slowly being dragged off of the detective's thigh. Shuichi cringed at the action but didn't say anything - he was quite relieved, actually. He did miss the warmth the other boy provided, however. It's not everyday that something like this happens. 

The loss of contact felt slightly strange. The detective was a bit disappointed that Kokichi had moved, but he understood. He wouldn't want to be caught like that - arms wrapped around another boy, stroking his hair whilst the other boy grabbed his thigh and held his hand. People would most likely assume something about the pair that Shuichi would like to avoid. "Ah- Don't suddenly move like that - you startled me."

Kokichi giggled to himself, raising a finger to his lips. "Was I more startling than the screaming, Shuichi?" 

"Nowhere near it, thankfully." He looked in front of him and saw a screen. It was incredibly dark, but upon closer inspection it appeared to be on static. He pointed towards it. "Hey, is this the end?" 

The boy in white bit his lip. "Uh... I think so? It kinda looks like a TV." 

Both boys stared at the screen in wonder, the sound effects and eerie music having stopped a few moments back. All that could be heard were the movements of the two boys and the boat gliding through the water which sloshed against the sides of the watercraft, accompanied by the light hissing of static. They stared intensely at the screen waiting for something to happen. Nothing. They gradually edged closer and closer towards the screen, their hearts racing. The watercraft came to a halt, the current of the water crashing against the boat angrily, however not escaping into the inside or splashing the boys. The duo sat still, dumbfounded, trying to figure out what was going on. The screen still showed static and was hissing threateningly like a furious snake. Without warning, everything went dark. Pitch black hungrily swallowed the pair whole as the ride seemingly shut down around them - the screen turning off, the dim lights flickering before leaving them in the shadows, the boat refusing to move. 

"I-Is it broken?" Shuichi leaned forwards in an attempt to inspect the screen further, however it was a pointless task considering the darkness had snatched away their sight. 

"I don't know... Maybe we should call for help? Or maybe not; I think I'd like being stuck here with you." Shuichi could practically feel Kokichi's taunting grin burning into his skin as he spoke. 

"I don't really want to be stuck here. This whole ride gives me the creeps." Shuichi sat back down in his seat carefully, trying not to rock the boat too harshly. "I hope something happens soon to prove that we're not trapped in here..."

As if on cue the screen lit up flashing brilliant colours, as well as the face of a girl with long black hair covering her pale face, whilst the distorted sounds of screeching and shouting and roaring echoed around them petrifyingly from the speakers located at all angles around them. The boat rocked frantically, shaking the duo from side to side with just enough force to keep them inside the watercraft but also fling them about without the occupants hurting themselves. The pair screamed at the jumpscare, Shuichi clutching his chest tightly with one hand and using the other to cling to his seat as he panted, Kokichi leaning back as far as humanly possible with his hands over his face. 

"What the _FUCK_?" Kokichi blurted out, wiping the sweat beading on his forehead, a small smile on his face. He wasn't angry or upset, rather he found this quite funny. It wasn't only him who displayed this reaction, Shuichi did too as the pair chuckled at how terrified they were at a bit of light and noise. 

The boat stopped rocking and all shrieking noises diminished as the two progressed further in the water, both still panting, giggling breathily and trying to calm themselves down. Eventually, the boat came to a stop for the final time and the lights flickered on. They weren't back where they started - they were in a dark room with wooden floors and brown walls illuminated by candles. The duo climbed out of the boat carefully, stumbling to regain their balances and left through the corridor in the middle of the far wall. Once out in the theme park again the pair began taking deep breaths of the fresh air; it was much better compared to the hot, musty atmosphere inside. 

"Hey, Kokichi. How'd you find _that_?" Shuichi asked, doubled over with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. He looked up to face the boy with his hands comfortably behind his head. 

"Meh. Wasn't too bad. Kinda boring though - it wasn't scary enough for a tough guy like me." He grinned widely, flashing his surprisingly white teeth at the detective. 

"So you're gonna pretend you wasn't scared? You jumped at the final jumpscare, Kokichi. You went flying back." Shuichi smiled, he wasn't going to bring up the artificial thunder. As far as he was aware, Kokichi was terrified of it. 

Kokichi rolled his eyes nonchantly. "So what? I totally knew that a jumpscare was coming. I just wasn't prepared for it." He shrugged and turned away from the detective, spinning on his black heels. 

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say Kokichi." Shuichi stood up straight, his breathing and heart rate having returned back to normal. "You hungry? I know I am. You want to get something to eat?" 

Kokichi smiled enthusiastically, turning his head to face the detective, his body still facing away. "Yeah! I want chips! And panta! Can we get panta? Pretty please?" He pouted innocently putting on his best set of puppy dog eyes though Shuichi could clearly see it was fake, but who was he to refuse? 

"Sure. Let's go." He signalled to the smaller boy to follow him, calling him over towards him with a finger as he paced in the opposite direction back towards the food court. 

"Wait up!" Kokichi energetically skipped after him cheerily, hungry for a snack. The pair, once the purple haired boy caught up, made their way towards the divine scent of food following their noses instinctively. They had passed it in order to reach the River Caves, so it wasn't too far to go. Once they arrived at the row of small buildings selling all different types of foods and beverages - burgers, hotdogs, chips, water, panta, donuts, ice cream, you name it - Kokichi instructed Shuichi to sit down at one of the various picnic benches lined up in front of the huts. "What do you wanna drink, Shuichi? Panta _or_?" He waited for Shuichi to finish his sentence for him, his voice trailing off. 

Shuichi sat down at a warm bench right underneath the blazing sun. It was the only one which wasn't covered in other people's rubbish which hadn't been discarded of, so why not take it? Shuichi hated it when people couldn't clean up after themselves. There were bins all around - it wasn't that difficult to take your trash there and be on your merry way. "I'll just have water, thank you."

Kokichi smiled cheerfully. "Water? 'Kay! I'll be back soon!" He chirped before running over to buy their lunch. 

Shuichi watched as Kokichi queued up. He noted the way Kokichi couldn't stand still, the way he fidgeted around either tapping a foot, bouncing on his heels or even cracking his knuckles. He was like a child, really. When he reached the front of the queue he had to stand on the tips of his toes to be able to see over the counter, to which Shuichi laughed. He watched Kokichi buy food, pointing at the signs above the counter, before handing over a sum of money. The smaller boy smiled happily as he approached the table once again, sitting down opposite Shuichi on the middle of the bench. "Bon appetit mon ami. Lunch is _served._ " 

"Thanks, Kokichi." He reached towards the bottle of water on the table before Kokichi slapped his hand. Shuichi quickly retracted his hand, holding it with the other. "What was _that_ for?" 

"Answer in French, silly!" Kokichi beamed as he rolled Shuichi's drink over to him. He was glad he hadn't bought anything fizzy, it would have surely exploded in his face after that. 

Shuichi picked up the bottle, unscrewing the cap. "I've forgotten most of my French because I haven't spoken any of it in years, but merci beaucoup." He sipped the water, thankful for the rush of cold wetness slipping across his tongue and down his throat. Perfect for a hot day. 

Kokichi clapped his hands. "Fabuleux! Okie dokie! I bought one portion of chips to share. Saves money, I'm not made of it y'know." He placed the paper bag of chips he had ripped open in front of them in the middle of the table where they both could reach it.

"I see. Thanks." Shuichi picked up one of the chips and began eating.

The pair sat in silence eating their lunch for a few minutes before Kokichi piped up once again. "I'm _bored._ "

Shuichi looked up from the table. "What am I supposed to do about that?"

The smaller boy rested his chin on his hands and he kicked his legs under the table. "I dunno. Entertain me." Almost instantaneously his face brightened back up. "Ooh! Let's play a game!"

Shuichi took another mouthful of water, having already finished half of the bottle. "Sure, I don't see why not. What game do you want to play?"

"Hmm..." He looked off in another direction as he contemplated his answer. "I want to play twenty-one questions. It'll be a good opportunity for us to pass time and get to know each other better. But twenty-one is too much, so I think four is enough."

Shuichi shrugged. "I don't have a problem with that. Who's going first?"

Kokichi smiled widely, a smirk tugging at his lips. "You."

"Oh... Um..." Shuichi bit his lip and looked down in thought. "I've been wondering... How old are you?" 

"Who knows?" Kokichi smiled at Shuichi's unimpressed expression. "Is what I want to say... But... I'm actually twenty, believe it or not. _Yes,_ I'm _young._ "

Shuichi rolled his eyes, holding back a smile. "You're not that young. I'm twenty-one. It's my birthday in a just over a month, actually. Okay, your turn."

"Ooh! Okay! Let's start with something easy. What... Are your hobbies? Do you have hobbies? You gotta have hobbies!" Kokichi leaned forwards in his seat as he shovelled another small handful of chips into his mouth. _At least he chewed with his mouth shut_ , Shuichi thought. 

Shuichi brought a hand to his chin in consideration. "I like reading. I read mystery and detective novels in my free time - a have a lot at home. I also try cooking a lot I guess? I'm not that great so I practise occasionally. I think that might be it. Sorry, I'm not that interesting. I'm usually busy working on cases."

"That's still interesting, in a way. You can apply your detective knowledge in the books, right?" He took another large swig of his panta, the bottle near enough empty at this point. 

"Y-Yeah. Most of the time I guess who the killer or the criminal is halfway through the book, sometimes even before. There are only a few times where I wasn't able to guess, but everything was clear once I reread the books. Those books where I'm unable to guess make the best stories, in my opinion." Shuichi decided to stop himself from talking about his books and move onto something else. "Do you have a job, Kokichi? What is it?" 

Kokichi's grin never faded as he smugly answered. "One question at a time, Shuichi."

"Answer it."

The boy in white sighed in defeat. "Okay... I _do_ have a job buuut... I'm self employed!" He put his hands behind his head joyfully. 

"That's interesting. What do you do?" The detective took another chip from the split bag. 

"I sell and smuggle illegal things on the darker side of the internet!" 

Shuichi was shocked, his eyes wide. "You... You _what_?" 

Kokichi held his hands up as if surrendering. "Hey! I'm just kidding! I run a prank business online, no biggie." He shrugged and returned to eating. 

"O-Oh... You had me worried for a moment. I'm glad I'm not talking to a criminal." He smiled as he sighed in relief. He'd hate to have to bust Kokichi for criminal activity, he couldn't imagine the innocent looking boy doing anything of the sort. 

"Ya. _Lucky._ Okay, my turn!" He tipped his head back, finishing off every last drop of grape panta he could get. "What are your biggest fears? C'mon, don't be shy." He returned to resting his hands under his chin, holding his head up. 

The question startled Shuichi. He wasn't expecting something like this to come up. His biggest fears? He had a lot of them. "Um... Heights are probably what I'm most afraid of..." Though, that wasn't necessarily true. While he was deathly afraid of heights, so many things scared him. He was afraid of being forgotten. Afraid of being hated, disliked, never good enough. Afraid of failure. Growing old alone and lonely because no one would ever love or appreciate someone like _him._ He wasn't obliged to tell Kokichi about any of this. Maybe another time, perhaps. He narrowed his eyes at the table, trying to fight the thoughts out of his head. 

"Oh, yeah, you said before. Sorry!" Kokichi could tell that something deeper was on his mind, but he was in no position to force Shuichi to speak, so he simply just ignored it and moved on. He wasn't bothered. "Your turn to ask me a question, Shuichi!" 

"Alright. I'm still not quite sure of the answer... So, why did you first talk to me back in the cafe?" Shuichi stole the last chip before Kokichi could snatch it from the paper.

Kokichi frowned at Shuichi's action, though he didn't really care. He'd eaten enough anyway. "I'm a big fan of yours! I read about you and your cases all the time in the newspapers. I really admire you, Shuichi! When I saw you, I really wanted to get to know you, y'know? Become your friend, too. Uh- O-Oh, I didn't mean to sound creepy. Sorry if I came off that way..." He chuckled lightly as he played with his empty panta bottle.

Shuichi was flattered. "A fan? I didn't think I'd have fans..."

"Well yeah! Of course you do, silly goose. You are a rising celebrity, after all." Kokichi shrugged, smiling up at Shuichi with a friendly beam. 

"A celebrity? Well, I don't know about _that..._ " The detective tucked his hair behind his ears, never removing his hat. He readjusted his head wear before placing his hands back on his knees. 

"Maybe you should just accept it? Most people would kill for a chance to shine in the spotlight." Kokichi looked at his nails, raising his eyebrows at his companion. 

"Y-Yeah. I'll try." He bashfully turned back towards Kokichi, knowing that it was his turn. "Your go."

"Yup! Okay! I'm throwing you right into the deep end now. You ready?" He took the hand he was inspecting and began drumming his fingers on the table gently. It was evident that he was looking forward to asking his question. 

"Sure?" Shuichi tipped his head a fraction to the side as he half shrugged. 

"Good! So... What's your sexuality? Do you like _boys_? Or just girls? Or maybe boys _and_ girls? Tell me, tell me!" The purple haired boy asked enthusiastically, slamming both hands on the table to stand up. Of course, he didn't care if Shuichi was straight. If he was, he wouldn't force the boy to deal with his advances anymore. He would stop his game of attempting to steal the detective's heart - if he wasn't interested, he wasn't interested. If anything, the only thing he would achieve is making Shuichi hate him, and he would never want that. The answer to this question would decide Shuichi's fate. 

"To be honest... I don't really like to label myself? I don't know. It's not really the type of thing I usually think about." This question was both difficult and embarrassing for the detective to answer. "I've had a few crushes here and there, gone out with a couple of people too... But I've never had a serious relationship so... I don't really know what I want or like or whatever. Sorry for such a lame answer, I know you were expecting more." He looked down at his hands which were balled into fists upon his knees. 

Kokichi could work with this. Yeah, he _could_. "So you're saying you've been in a relationship with another boy before? Oh, don't worry. I'm not making fun of you. I'm just... Seeing if we're on the same boat here." He didn't want to embarrass or make the detective too uncomfortable, so offering support and comfort was the only thing he was able to do to keep the situation at hand. 

"Don't tell a soul but... Y-Yeah. It wasn't serious though... I didn't know how to reject him and I didn't want to hurt his feelings so I just accepted. It wasn't horrible going out with him, however. He was a nice boy. I actually ended up liking him a bit in the end, I think. I don't know." Shuichi furrowed his brows as he bit his bottom lip anxiously. God, Kokichi was going to think he was weird. 

Kokichi's face lit up. "So you _do_ like some boys? Coolio. Just what I wanted to hear."

"Wait- what? You wanted to hear that I liked boys? U-Um..." Shuichi peered up at the boy who was still standing with a look of distress on his face. 

Kokichi burst into a fit of giggles. "No! I meant that I wanted to hear a proper answer instead of an 'I don't know'. You can be such an airhead sometimes, Shuichi." He plopped back down onto the bench wiping tears from his eyes. Of course he had been lying. He was happy his game could continue. It would be such a bummer to have to kill his fun. More playthings were always difficult to find, especially interesting ones like Shuichi. He had struck _gold_ finding this detective, and he wasn't going to let him go anytime soon. 

"O-Oh... Sorry. I wasn't really thinking. So um... My turn I guess?" He sighed as he thought carefully. This was the fourth question, after all. "What do you hate the most in the world?" This was a good opportunity to learn more about the other boy. Likes and dislikes were informative and all, but learning what one loves and hates were even more so. 

Kokichi pulled his face into a frown. "What I hate the most? Pig feet. Pigs have disgusting feet. But most of all, I hate liars!"

"But... Aren't you a liar yourself?" Shuichi questioned pointedly, ignoring his comments about pigs. He unscrewed the lid from his water bottle, bringing it to his lips. 

"Yup. We both know that very well." Kokichi sang happily, no longer frowning or looking glum. 

"But you said you hate- Actually, nevermind. I wouldn't understand." Shuichi shook his head dismissively as he finished drinking his water. 

"Right again! The brain of an intelligent enigma like me isn't easy to comprehend." He balled up the greasy tissue which once held the chips. Pulling a face of disgust, he wiped the grease clinging to his hands on the bench beside him. "Guess this is my final question, huh? Nee-heehee... What's your opinion on the phantom thief?" 

"What?" 

Kokichi huffed impatiently. "Your arch enemy. What do you think of him?" 

The detective didn't know how to answer. "Um... Well... He's smart, I guess. Cunning. Very fast. A pain in the backside. A devious little midget who I'd love to get locked up. Ah- You get the jist, right?" He chuckled nervously. Whilst he meant what he said, he also meant the complete opposite at the same time. 

Kokichi's face fell. "What? You mean to say you _hate_ him?" 

"Ah- No! Not at all. He's actually not that bad? I think? I don't trust him. I don't believe much of what he says at all which is _probably_ a wise decision, but I can't help but wonder about the things he says. He's... He's weird, okay? He just confuses me. I want to unmask him and rub it in his face that he's nowhere near above the law, of course, but I also want to solve him. He's a mystery. I just can't seem to guess the ending of our story like I'm able to guess with all those novels I read..." At this point Shuichi was deep in thought. Everything about the phantom thief intrigued him - his identity, his personality, his reliability, even his lies. He wanted to trust him, but he knew that it wasn't a possibility. Trusting the thief would only allow him to be manipulated, wrapped around the criminal's finger like a puppet. 

"Didn't you say the endings you couldn't guess made the best stories?" 

The dark haired boy's eyes widened. "Y- _Yeah_. You're right. I _did_ say that." He smiled, maybe this whole phantom thief thing wouldn't be so awful. 

"Hey, so before we get up and leave, d'ya mind if I ask something else?" The boy in white climbed over the table to sit beside Shuichi. It would have probably been easier to just walk around it, but Kokichi didn't care as long what he did as he got what he wanted in the end. 

Shuichi shuffled over as Kokichi shook the table with his weight. It wasn't much, but he was still heavy enough to have impact on the table. "Go ahead."

He leaned his elbows on the table, resting his chin on his fingers which were threaded together. "You said something about a girl called Kaede earlier when telling me about your past. She's a friend, right? Could you tell me about her? And your other friends too, of course. Only if its okay with you, though."

Shuichi seemed taken aback by the mentioning of Kaede. He'd forgotten until now. Kokichi noticed how the taller boy tensed up slightly after hearing her name, growing suspicious. _Was she on the phone?_ "I-I don't mind talking about them... Kaede Akamatsu is a childhood friend. I spent most of my time with her. I didn't have many friends but she was always there for me despite being so popular. She's practically a sister to me haha... We technically grew up together. The three of us, Kaede, her younger sister and I, used to play out in the park all afternoon and go out adventuring. But then Kaede's sister... It's nothing. We try not to think about her." He shook his head, banishing the memory of the girl he was describing from his head. "A-Anyway, Kaede is a pianist. She's pretty popular, most people have heard of her. She's even performed in front of celebrities - even monarchy! She's pretty amazing. She just wants to help everyone and gives great advice. She's kind, generous, caring. It's incredibly admirable." Shuichi looked at the table, evidently zoning out with a smile on his face. He really did appreciate Kaede for being there for him no matter what. 

"Aw, _cute_! You two should totally date!" Kokichi teased, clasping his hands together. 

Shuichi snapped out of his reminiscence immediately. "No thanks. I just see her as a friend. I'm nowhere as good as her, I'm not worthy of someone like her anyway. I don't care who she ends up with, as long as she's happy and safe. Don't get the wrong idea, though. I don't like her like that, she's like family to me."

"I was just kidding, calm down. Tell me about your other friends. Pretty _please_?" He leaned closer to Shuichi to make sure he definitely heard his drawn out 'please'. 

Shuichi leaned away, not liking the increase in volume right beside his ear. "Sure. The only other friends I really have are my best friends Maki and Kaito. We met a few years back at a mall. Kaito was out with Maki trying to win her heart over by buying her gifts, it was quite sweet, really. They weren't dating at that point, like they are now. Maki works at a nursery with lots of little children. She doesn't like kids, however, so it's an odd career choice in my opinion. She's not much of a conversationalist and she's very quiet and serious, but once she gets to know you and opens up she's really fun and sweet. Kaito is training to become an astronaut. I've known Kaito for a bit longer than Maki, and we're much closer. He's always enthusiastic and energetic. Quite an airhead too, but he's always offering great advice no matter how much logic it lacks. They're both really good people who mean the world to me." The detective couldn't help but smile widely as he spoke about his friends. They were all he had, ultimately. He didn't know what he would do without them. 

Kokichi appeared increasingly interested in every word Shuichi uttered, nodding after every couple of sentences to show he was still listening and taking it all in. "You've got yourself a great crowd. I'd love to meet them some time."

"Maybe you can. We hang out sometimes at the cafe we met at. Next time we all meet up there, I'll invite you along too if they say it's okay." Shuichi was quite interested in Kokichi's friends too. He had mentioned them earlier saying they hadn't let him borrow their vehicle so this was his chance to ask about them. "What about your friends? What are they like?" 

Kokichi hummed. "They're just normal, average people. You don't wanna hear about _them._ Plus, they don't really like to be talked about, so telling you about them would _totally_ be betraying them. Besides, they're not important." Shuichi didn't like how Kokichi was being so vague and evasive in his answer. He had just given him enough information on his friends to write a whole book whereas Kokichi hadn't even mentioned names. He didn't think it was very fair, but who was he to force anything out of Kokichi? Before the detective could find another way to get information out of the smaller boy, he switched the topic swiftly. "Shuichi, I wanna go on more rides now... Let's go!" He stood up again behind Shuichi and tugged on his shoulders gently.

"Woah- Okay- Just let go of me and we can." Shuichi picked up both boys' trash and tossed it in the grey bin beside the table. Kokichi released Shuichi's shoulders from his grasp and hopped back, allowing him to move. The detective stood up with a groan, his injured leg still hurting, and stretched his arms above his head as he spoke again. "Just try to take it easy and be careful in case you make yourself sick."

Kokichi smiled childishly and skipped off behind Shuichi. "Okay! I wanna go on that one! Hurry up, slow coach!" He pointed towards one of the rides in the distance as Shuichi followed behind, a small smile tugging at his lips. 

-

The red head slammed her head on the desk of her oak vanity, the tears on her wet cheeks smearing across the wood. In her right hand was the calling card the thief had slipped into her clothing. On the calling card was cold, cruel, callous blackmail - a picture of herself from... Darker days. How could DICE have gotten ahold of it? She was sure all pictures were removed and deleted soon after they were taken. She didn't know what to do... All courses of action she could take all lead to the same outcome: humiliation, a ruined reputation and the loss of everything she'd worked so hard for. If she told the police, they'd ask to see the card. Then they would see the image and she would no doubt get into much more trouble than she had bargained for. Same with the Saihara Detective Agency, plus she would be humiliated in front of all of the investigators. 

She had been attempting to rid of the photograph any way she could, but each time was unsuccessful. She tried to rip it off but whatever the card was made out of was far too strong and she could only bend it feebly. Her attempts of scribbling the picture out with a black marker failed too, the pen just wiped straight off of it whenever it touched something. She even tried cutting it off, but at no point was it able to be chopped. Nothing worked. It definitely had to be the work of Gadget. Everything was hopeless. She truly was stuck. To make matters worse, the hint was partially written across the photograph. Getting rid of that would cause problems for the people trying to solve it, especially since it seemed to be the most important part. Damn, DICE knew what they were doing. She felt helpless. Useless. Empty. Used. Just like how they wanted her to be. They knew that she wouldn't be able to do anything if she cared about herself and her reputation - they had her cornered. She was a toy for them to play with.

The only person she could try to trust was that shy detective from her party. What's his name again? _Think, Mahiru, think! Ah..._ Shuichi Saihara. He didn't seem too pushy, or talkative for that matter. She doubted that he'd pry too much for information an innocent party was reluctant to give. He seemed the type to work around things like this to ensure that his clients were comfortable with his decisions. If she explained to him her scenario he'd surely help her - they were both against DICE, after all. 

Tomorrow. She'd take a trip to the office tomorrow and pay Shuichi Saihara a visit. If he was interested in taking down the phantom thief and his organisation, he'd help her. She had exactly what he needed, it wouldn't be a wise decision to turn her down. The next heist was merely days away. There was no time to lose. 

-

Kokichi felt as if he were on top of the world, gripping onto the bars tightly and staring out of the metal cage they were closed in, the charming summer breeze combing through his shoulder length hair. Shuichi, on the other hand, tensed up whenever the cage shook (or more specifically, whenever Kokichi moved). He wasn't as fond of these heights as Kokichi, but he was still enjoying himself if he ignored the fright and panic poking at his chest. Kokichi sat opposite him in the ferris wheel cage to balance out the weight - it wasn't helping Shuichi's case that every time he moved, said balance was thrown off. The fresh air filling his lungs was rejuvenating. He truly felt at peace, even when the fiery sunset clawed through the sides of the cage, streaking orange marks down his face and body. He tensed up again, inhaling through his teeth as the smaller boy shuffled around again, this time to face Shuichi. 

"Hey. It's nice here, isn't it?" He crossed his legs on the plastic seat which lined the whole of the inside of the round cage, only possible because of how small and skinny he was. 

Shuichi readjusted his hat to shield his eyes from the blazing sunset. "Yeah. It's not every day that you get to see the world from this perspective, huh?" 

"Perspective?" Kokichi tilted his head slightly as if he didn't understand. 

He nodded. "Yeah... I mean most people just come on here for the thrill of being up high, right? I was looking out through the bars and I couldn't help but notice my eyes being drawn to the scenery below. All the grass and trees, the rivers and lakes - I don't think people appreciate them enough. And sure, most people look out from here and think _'woah that's amazing'_ but they don't really value the sight they see. I'm not sure where exactly I'm going with this, but I hope I've been able to get my point across."

Kokichi sat back, putting his feet back on the floor, the ferris wheel still spinning slowly. "I agree. It's why I have my hangout beside a lake in a restricted area in the park, after all." He combed his hair behind his ear with one hand. "In fact, nature isn't the only astonishing thing that isn't appreciated enough."

"Hm? And what's that?"

"You."

Shuichi smiled and looked away. "I... Don't know how to respond to that." His voice was almost a whisper.

Kokichi giggled. "It's okay! At least you smiled at the comment, that's all that matters. I really did appreciate you coming out with me today, though. It's been super fun."

Shuichi looked back at him. He was staring out of the cage at the stunning setting before him in awe. "I enjoyed it too. I feel like I've grown much closer to you than anticipated, if I'm being honest."

He didn't turn his head as he responded. "Well, if _I'm_ being honest I've gotta say I'm glad to have spent time with you today. I really got to know you better, you're so much cooler than I expected. You're a really impressive person, Shuichi. You're not a bad guy at all." He faced Shuichi once again to see his reaction. The ferris wheel began stopping to switch the occupants. They were now at the highest point of the wheel, able to see everything clearly. 

"I agree; learning more about you was nice. It's been a pleasure being with you today. I... I want to do something like this again with you soon if that's okay. You're a fun person. You've really helped me today. Thank you." Both boys smiled softly, staring into each others' eyes. Though they had only met about twenty-four hours ago, it was times like this with Kokichi that he thought were worthwhile. It was rare for something like this to happen, extremely rare in fact, but to Shuichi, Kokichi was a blessing - a miracle. Kokichi's violet eyes glistened in the warm rays of the sunset, shining brilliant shades of amethyst. It reminded Shuichi of the stars. Astronomy. The beautiful galaxy and all of its wonders. It fit Kokichi perfectly - he was full of wonder and mystery much like the galaxy itself.

Kokichi opened his mouth to say something but closed it again, sighing heavily through his nose and furrowing his eyebrows as the ferris wheel began to spin slowly once again. It was their turn to get off. Shuichi was disappointed that Kokichi decided not to speak. He was interested in what he had to say, especially at that moment where they were one. An ordinary person wouldn't have made note of how Kokichi attempted to talk, however Shuichi was not just ordinary - picking up on these slight movements were what made him a great detective. Paying attention to detail was his specialty. But even so, Shuichi couldn't bring himself to ask about it - he couldn't stand the thought of making things awkward after they had just shared such a heartfelt conversation. Once they had gotten off of the ride, they wandered in the opposite direction of it aimlessly. Kokichi reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone - slim and purple - and turned on the screen to check the time.

"Already half six? We should probably go now. You ready to leave, Shuichi?" The shorter boy turned to face Shuichi, who simply smiled and nodded in response. "Coolio. The exit is this way." He tugged on the detective's sleeve tightly and pulled him along behind him. It wasn't a long walk back to the car park, but Shuichi could already feel himself growing drowsy and tired. It had been a long day - he was exhausted, but who could blame him? The past few weeks had been increasingly eventful and it was a challenge for the apprentice detective to keep up. Kokichi opened the door of the shiny car for the other boy, closing it behind him before climbing into the driver's side himself. Seeing Shuichi was falling asleep, he shook him awake by his shoulders. "Hey! Wake up! I need your address! Type it into the car's sat nav for me, kay?"

Shuichi opened his eyes, his eyelids heavy and practically begging him to let go. "Mm... Alright." He leaned forwards and tapped his address into the device, opening his eyes as wide as he could to keep himself awake and check for mistakes. Once he was sure there weren't any he leaned back and shuffled around to get comfortable. He rested his head on the window, his hat accidentally slipping off onto the floor, and slipped into unconsciousness. 

Reversing the car from its parking spot, Kokichi couldn't help but look over at the sleeping boy and smile. Whispering quietly to not wake him up, his eyes ventured back to the roads. "Sweet dreams, detective." He turned on the radio and began to sing quietly to himself. It was going to be a long drive. 

Shuichi woke up with a groan, the other boy tapping and shaking his shoulder. His neck ached from being in such an uncomfortable position. "Where are we? What happened?" His voice was a mumble seeing he was far from being completely awake.

Kokichi reached down in front of Shuichi and picked his hat off of the floor. "You're home now. Here, you'd hate to leave this. Don't forget it." He placed the black hat onto Shuichi's lap and sat back up.

The golden eyed boy faced the window and peered out through the glass. "Oh... You're right. Thanks for bringing me home."

The boy in the driver's seat laughed. "Where else would I bring you? Whilst I do enjoy your presence very, very much, I have no interest in kidnapping you, silly."

"Mm okay. What's the time?" Shuichi reached to his side to unbuckle this seat belt. He didn't remember strapping himself in - Kokichi must've done it for him.

Kokichi looked at the time displayed on the sat nav screen. "Just gone eight. We've been driving for about an hour and a half. I need to return the car by nine so you're gonna have to hop on out soon."

Shuichi nodded lethargically and opened the car door. "Alright. Thanks for today. See you soon." He stepped out of the car and put his hat back on his head. How long had Kokichi seen his hair for? Did he stare? Laugh? It was better to not think about it. He was too tired to overthink it too deeply, luckily.

"See ya soon, Shuichi! I'll text you later, maybe. Look after that leg. Bye bye!" Kokichi waved, a big grin across his face that Shuichi was more than used to seeing at this point as the exhausted detective slammed the car door shut weakly. The purple haired boy sped off in the dark car leaving Shuichi in front of his building alone.

Not wanting to be outside any longer, craving the warmth of his apartment, the boy walked into the lobby of the building heading towards the lift. The events of today spun through his head as he recounted them one by one. This was no doubt one of the funnest days of his entire life, if he excluded those few mishaps scattered throughout his day. Once the lift reached the ninth floor he hurried our towards his room. He pulled his keycard from his pocket, looking down at the floor whilst he searched for it. Once he had found it he looked up. He stared at his door. The door that had guaranteed him safety for years. _...What?_ A piece of paper had been taped to the wood, writing typed up onto it in angry red text.

' _We're watching, detective. Be very careful._  
_Don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong._  
_After all, curiosity **killed** the cat._  
_This isn't the end, Shuichi Saihara._  
_**This is merely just the beginning.**_ '

He read the note over and over, unable to comprehend what he was reading. A threat? How did they know where he lived? Unless... It had to be the work of the phantom thief. It all made sense to him now. The only way any criminal would know where he lived was if they had been to his apartment, just like the thief did. It wouldn't take much to find out what his phone number was - maybe the thief searched through his things when he was sleeping. He'd never know. Shuichi tore the note from the door and entered his apartment. 

Slamming the note on the table, he stormed into the kitchen. He'd take out his anger on the dishes - he needed to do them anyway. He needed to make dinner too, now that he thought about it. He may have been more annoyed than words could explain but he wasn't one to let himself starve. His health was extremely important to him. Right now, however, he was too focused on his fury towards the criminal organisation targeting him to worry about his appetite. 

He was furious. To think that he thought the phantom thief could be seen as trustworthy? He really was an idiot. The next time he saw that damn menace he'd give him a stern talking to. Hell, he'd even claw that mask off of his face. He didn't care anymore. _No one_ threatens Shuichi Saihara with the lives of his friends. _No one_ breaks into Shuichi Saihara's home and tampers with his belongings. And _**no one**_ treats Shuichi damn Saihara like a pathetic plaything.

Next time he saw the cloaked brat he'd get him. He'd settle things once and for all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really sorry this took so long to get out. I took a three day break after posting the last chapter and then I had three birthdays this week to deal with leaving not much time to write. This chapter has been really rushed as a result and I'm gonna admit, it's not that great. On the contrary, the next chapter will focus more on the main story so you'll be glad to see some progress.
> 
> What's up with Mahiru? How does she know about DICE? How does she know about Gadget, one of their members?
> 
> I guess you'll just have to wait and find out yourself.


	10. A (Not So) Picturesque Predicament

It was a long time ago. Three children were in a garden; two girls, one boy. One of the girls couldn't have been older than ten, the other couldn't have been older than eight. A mere two year difference separated them - it was the only thing that could ever separate the pair. The boy was only slightly older than the eldest girl, but she was the one who was responsible for the both of them like a parent. The group sat huddled beneath a tree surrounded by tall bushes and plants in the shade as they shielded themselves from the cruel, unforgiving world around them. The boy's parents were coming to get him soon, so they all simultaneously decided to hide from them. The girls were confident that they wouldn't be found there - it _was_ their garden after all. Who would search for them _there?_ The boy didn't like his parents. The girls didn't like his parents either. They were mean people who were always too busy to care for their son, always pushing him away. She didn't want them to take her friend away again, especially when they neglected him day after day. She didn't know when she would see him again after that, it could have been days, weeks or even months. It all came down to whether the boy's parents had work outside of the city - the boy couldn't stay alone by himself so they left him with his uncle. His uncle had work too, though he would bring the boy with him sometimes and teach him everything he'd learned. Other times, when his work became too stressful, he would leave the boy to play out with the girls. He had a bad childhood in an unloving household. She didn't think it was fair that such a sweet boy received such unaffectionate treatment; he didn't do anything wrong to deserve it! The older girl promised that she would always take care of him, forever and ever. It was a solemn oath that she had sworn to herself. She loved the boy. The younger girl loved the boy. The girls' parents loved the boy, too. What she could never understand was why her best friend's parents didn't love him. He was the kindest boy she knew, and she adored everything about him. She wouldn't let anything or anyone hurt him. She was his protector.  
_"I promise to always make you happy."_

-

The morning sun dashed a bright streak across the detective's pale face through his open curtains as his eyes fluttered open. Another boring day of his boring life. He rubbed his eyes tiredly, having woken from a strange dream. In his dream, he was locked in a small wooden cottage, though it could be argued that it was just a room seeing as the 'cottage' was four simple walls and a roof. However, that was besides the point. The floorboards were cracked and dusty, some poking up from the ground in an attempt to escape their demise. The walls weren't much different either; monochrome and musty. There was no light hanging from the ceiling and the thick maroon velvet curtains covering the windows were shut tight. The only source of light in the room was an array of candles on the large, circular table he sat at in the middle of the room. On the other side of the table sat a boy Shuichi was very familiar with - Kokichi Ouma himself sitting on a tall stool, one of the legs slightly broken allowing the boy to rock himself back and forth on it. The purple haired boy was humming to himself quietly and didn't seem to pay attention to the detective when he spoke to the smaller boy, ignoring him completely as if he wasn't there. His humming turned into singing, his voice sweet and intoxicating; the type of charming voice which could put you under a spell. His singing wasn't bad at all, rather it was soothing and relaxing. What he was singing wasn't clear no matter how hard the detective tried to listen. His singing was just a collection of inaudible sounds, yet Shuichi found himself being drawn into the melodic tune, leaning on the table to listen closer to the harmonic sounds spilling from the other boy's lips. Finally, his blank eyes met Shuichi's. Their eye contact lasted for a few long seconds which felt like minutes before the smaller boy smiled deviously bearing his blindingly white teeth, hopped off from where he was sitting and disappeared from the room, slamming the door behind him. The detective called out for him to come back and gave chase to find the door locked, trapping him inside. That was when Shuichi finally woke up from his slumber. The dream creeped the detective out. Why was he in a dark room with Kokichi? Why was he singing? Why did he run away and lock him in? It was all a mystery to him. It may have meant nothing at all, but Shuichi firmly believed that all dreams meant something, especially since he didn't dream much himself. He'd had a rough night, waking up every few hours, tossing and turning uncomfortably. He was undeniably tired, but wanted to get moving out of bed as quickly as he could. 

He climbed out of bed, the dull pain in his leg scrambling up his limb pathetically. His leg was getting better, slowly but surely. He walked towards his desk, picking his phone up off of it. He'd usually wake to a notification from Powwow or maybe a text message at least, but today there was nothing. Not even Kokichi had messaged him like he said he would yesterday. Of course, he could always initiate a conversation himself rather than wait for Kokichi to. Maybe later. He put the phone into his jacket pocket and left his room to go to the kitchen. He'd been sleeping in his clothes from the day before a lot lately. It was a habit he hated but he was just too tired in the evenings to bother. All the boy wanted was a good night's sleep. Was that too much to ask for? He opened the kitchen door and approached the cupboard where he took two slices of bread out of the bag and placed them in the toaster. 

He stared at the white electronic as the bread was slowly being burnt. A lot had happened the day before. A phone call. A threat. An amazing day out. What could he do? If it _was_ the phantom thief then there was no way the police could do anything about it. And besides, they hadn't actually entered his apartment. The most they did was tape a note to his door. Annoying. God, Shuichi _hated_ that thief. He despised him more than anything else in the whole world. He reached into his pocket to find his phone, his fingers fiddling about in the fabric. He placed the phone on the counter top, reaching back into his pocket. No, no no no _no._ He could've sworn that he had it. He remembered slipping it into his pocket the morning before, after the meeting at his office. The detective began searching more frantically in his pockets, checking each and every single one thoroughly in case he just forgot where he put it. Crap... The calling card for the second heist was gone. Shuichi recounted the possibilities that it could've slipped out of his pockets yesterday at the theme park considering he had been on some exhilarating rides and roller-coasters which tossed you around like a ragdoll, spinning you around and around and around. He couldn't help but curse under his breath, he had lost important evidence against the thief. Perfect. The whole scenario just added to his _great_ mood. As he sighed frustratedly, the bread, now a light golden brown, popped back up. Shuichi plated and buttered them both before cleaning up the mess he'd made and left for the living room. 

He walked over towards his table and plopped the plate onto it almost carelessly as he slumped onto one of the seats. Shuichi's eyes wandered the table, scrutinising its details and features. Then he laid his eyes on the paper. Stupid. He flipped it over, slamming it fiercely into the wood. He didn't want to see it. He didn't want to think about it. He picked up a slice of toast by a corner and lifted it to his mouth. Of course he didn't want to think about the note... Or the phone call... But he had to. He had to figure out what course of action he would take, after all. He couldn't just let himself live in fear, could he? Then he remembered what had been said to him. The girl they were asking him to trade his life with? Could it be Kaede? It had to be her, right? Shuichi dropped the toast onto the plate and immediately began dialing his friend's number as quickly as he could. Kaede was known to be an early bird - she _should_ be awake at this time. She wasn't one to sleep in. The phone rang. The taunting sound of ringing laughed in Shuichi's ear. Waiting for her to pick up felt like an eternity. Was she going to answer? Was she okay? Was she the one who-

"Hello?" The voice yawned tiredly.  
"K-Kaede? Is that you?" Shuichi's heart was racing. Was she alright? She sounded a mess.  
"No. It's Kaito... Shuichi, who else would it be?" She giggled slightly, trying to mask her exhaustion.  
"Okay, okay, it's you. I was just surprised you answered."  
"Hm? Why's that?"  
Should he tell her the reason? Surely she'd panic... Just like with Kokichi, he couldn't drag anyone else into this. He had to protect her, after all. She had been protecting him his entire life. "N-Nothing. I just thought you'd be busy. So u-um... You sound uncharacteristically tired. Make sure you're getting enough sleep." A swift change of topic would prevent her from carrying on the conversation.  
"Mm yeah. I was playing piano all night trying to perfect my pieces for the recital. My own original pieces are coming together quite nicely. Anyways, I've only had a half an hour nap and your phone call woke me up." She spoke slowly and quietly, half asleep.  
Shuichi felt bad for disrupting her sleep. Poor girl. That recital was really dragging her through the wringer. "Kaede! Please, I know that you want everything to work out perfectly but your health is more important. Go to bed at a reasonable time from now on. If you're sleeping all day and up all night you're going to mess up your body clock and be too tired on the day of the recital. Please take care of yourself. I'm sorry for waking you, go back to sleep." He smiled to himself as he realised that he kind of sounded like her. Her motherly personality really did rub off on him. He was, however, extremely relieved that nothing had happened to her. If she had been the one who had been kidnapped, he would have traded himself in right away without a second thought. A sweet girl like her didn't deserve half the pain and torture of being held hostage. But if it wasn't Kaede... Who could it possibly be?  
"No... Wait... I have something to ask first." The girl asked hesitantly.  
"Oh, you do? How can I help you?"  
"I know you've already just spent a week over here but..." She sighed into the phone. Was something troubling her? Were those guys going after her too? "Could you stay over this weekend?"  
Her request surprised him. Why did she want him so close to her? Could she be trying to protect him? Did she know about him? It was a stretch, but Shuichi was right to be paranoid about anything at this point. "I really don't want to be any trouble to you..."  
"I promise you won't. I'm the one who's inviting you, you're not a thorn in my side at all."  
"I-I don't know... I'll stay over on Friday night, that's it. Is that alright with you?" He really didn't want to be a burden or seem like he was leeching off of her all of the time. He was a grown man now - twenty-one - _not_ a child. He liked to think that he was able to provide for himself, no offence to Kaede at all; she was only trying to be nice. She was a generous, thoughtful girl with no ill intentions.  
"Great! That's good enough for me. Truth is, I want to show you my new pieces. I need constructive criticism on how I could improve." She sounded happy enough, so Shuichi was satisfied.  
"I see. I'd be happy to help."  
"Thank you! I'm gonna go back to sleep now, I'm beat. See you on Friday. Bye."  
"Ah, sweet dreams. Bye." He quickly hung up so his friend could get some rest. She deserved it. It was Wednesday. There was still two whole days until Friday - plenty of time until that night. 

He placed his phone back on the table and continued eating, never taking his eyes off of the sheet of paper he had flipped over almost as if he were making sure it didn't attack. Who was it? If it wasn't Kaede who else could it be? Swallowing the final bite of toast, he stood up and picked up his plate in silence, bringing it into the kitchen to wash it up. He dropped the plate carefully into the sink and turned the tap on, letting the water dance upon the white glass. The sound of rushing water was somehow calming to him as it splashed onto the plate, the pitter-pattering reminding him of rainy nights where he would lay in bed, safe, staring out of the window at his feet watching the heavy raindrops race down the panes. Now he didn't feel safe in his own home. Clearing his troubled head with the more positive thoughts, he rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and began scrubbing the plate clean. After a moment he had completed his task and set the plate carefully on the drying rack. He sighed deep in thought as he turned the tap off and watched the water swirl elegantly around the plug hole like a beautifully mesmerising tornado. 

Suddenly his phone began to ring in the other room. Ignoring the horrendous ringtone he had to change as soon as he could, Shuichi's eyes widened. His heart rate picked up. Was it _them?_ Were they going to threaten him again? Without wasting a second to dwell on the possible outcomes and explanations, he darted hastily into the living room, back to where he had left his phone on the table. He eyed the contact name analytically. It was _him,_ luckily enough. His uncle. The young apprentice detective would have released a heavy sigh of relief, however if his uncle was calling him _now_ of all times, it could only indicate that something bad had happened, right? He had a terrible, chest aching hunch that that was the case. And so, he reluctantly picked up the phone and answered the call. 

"H-Hello?" His breath hitched nervously. He hoped to dear God that his uncle hadn't noticed. However, his uncle was a trained detective who had been in the profession for years - much longer than Shuichi had been alive, in fact. He wasn't that easy to fool.  
"Shuichi. It's just me. There's no need to sound so startled." Unless something's up...  
"Y-Yeah. I know. Your phone call just..." He searched for a plausible excuse to avoid the process of explicating his troublesome scenario to his uncle. "Woke me up, I guess. There's nothing to worry about, I'm just tired."  
"I see. Please make sure you're getting enough sleep in the future. Don't make yourself sick." Shuichi couldn't believe that his story had actually been believable - he didn't sound tired at all. Rather he sounded scared as he stuttered, and as he picked up the call he released the slightest sigh of relieved panic into the phone. "I'm not going to bother wasting anymore time so I'll just cut to the chase. I called because there is someone here for you." His tone dropped to that of a low one, indicating that the topic had switched to something very serious.  
Upon hearing the news, however vague it was, Shuichi's heart felt as if it were about to stop. As if he were about to die right that instant. He could feel the throbbing and pounding of his rapid heartbeat in his ears, blood rushing from his pale face. Had they found him? Were they going to come for him now because he had defied them? He bit his lip and with a gulp he finally broke the silence. "Who is it?" Half of him dread the answer, but the other half knew it couldn't possibly be the people targeting him. The thief wouldn't just walk right up to the people investigating him and demand to see the detective who had been assigned to persue him. He wasn't that stupid. As much as Shuichi would love for the criminal to do that so he could arrest him and all of his underlings, the imp wouldn't be so reckless. Unfortunate.   
"She goes by the name Mahiru Koizumi. I do believe that you've already been acquainted, so you won't need any introductions. I've tried asking her but she won't disclose what she needs to talk about. The only thing she has said is that she needs to talk to you specifically, and now." Hearing his uncle console him with this reassuring information, Shuichi's nerves were slowly dissolving. He'd had a tough night sleeping and since last night he had felt on edge, paranoid, like a rabbit in headlights. These people knew where he lived. They probably knew where he worked too. They could easily find him if they wanted to hurt him, and from the sounds of their phone call, it seemed like they did. It was better to be cautious, just in case. It was the wisest course of action to take in this situation. The man lowered his voice into a whisper so the girl couldn't hear him. "Please hurry, Shuichi. She's getting very impatient."  
"R-Right, yeah. I'll be there soon. Try to get an explanation out of her while you wait. Bye." The young detective put the phone back into his pocket with a huff. He didn't really want to go out today - the paranoia was plaguing him like a relentless disease. 

By the time he'd gotten dressed, locked his door and left his building, ten minutes had already passed. Shuichi found himself, once again, sprinting (though rather it was more of a mixture of a run, limp and hop due to his still slightly injured leg) quickly towards the office building. Ignoring the dull pain in his limb, he fastened his pace as he continued through the sunny streets. Lungs screaming for air, he approached the office slowing to a simple walk in an attempt to reinflate his airways. With a wheeze he peered through the tall glass double doors, his breath fogging up part of the window as he tried to see in. His uncle was sitting behind the reception desk, resting his head on one hand with a pen in the other. It wasn't clear what he was doing because the desk covered everything below his shoulders. Shuichi could only assume he was doing work and not slacking off like he occasionally does, doing word searches or sodukos when he thinks no one is watching. In front of the desk was the lady of the hour - Mahiru Koizumi in all of her glory, if 'glory' described the anxious look on her face as she paced back and forth, hands on her hips. Around her waist was a small dark green bag, complementing her similarly coloured attire very nicely, which bounced every time her leg hit it as she walked. Shuichi stood back up straight and leaned off of the window. Having caught his breath again, he pulled the door open and entered the warm, dark lobby. As soon as the door opened, Mahiru's head flashed in his direction with a razor sharp quickness, completely stopping in her tracks. She watched silently as Shuichi approached the reception desk to talk to his uncle. 

The older man looked up and used his pen to point down the hall to his right. "Take a room down the hall. The interrogation room is in use right now. Those girls again..." He motioned for Shuichi to lean in closer so he could talk quieter. "I tried to get some information out of her, but it was to no avail. Girl wouldn't explain. If something happens give me a shout and I'll come running. Better see what she needs you for now, before she explodes from impatience and frustration." He beamed as he got back to work. As Shuichi leaned over the desk he took a quick peek at what his uncle was doing. _Soduko, ha, what a surprise._

Shuichi turned around and beckoned for Mahiru to follow him as he began to saunter down the hallway. Grey wallpaper decorated the monochrome corridor, looking as miserable as ever, the carpet the same dark charcoal as it had always been. The girl hurried after him silently, wanting to get this over and done with as hastily as possible, into the furthest room from the lobby. Shuichi unlocked the door and offered the photographer a warm smile as he let her in before him, locking it behind the pair of them once she was in. 

The room wasn't as desolate or empty looking as the interrogation room. It still had a desk in the center of the room as well as wooden stools on one side of it and a comfy armchair on wheels on the other, but there were no cameras in here, there weren't any bookcases lining the bright cream walls (a pleasant change to the gloominess of the rest of the melancholy building) and the room had a more welcoming atmosphere overall. Shuichi chose this room because of this reason. He'd mainly use it with clients who were in distress - putting them in a dark, intimidating room would likely cause them even more distress. Judging by Mahiru's actions, there was something on her mind which was stressing her out. The best thing to do in this situation was to calm her down enough for her to talk. He liked this room - it was his secret weapon. 

Shuichi walked over towards the blue armchair and spun it to face the door, near where she was standing. "Hey, come and sit down here. I'll take a stool, don't worry. Make yourself at home." He beamed kindly, watching the girl's every movement to see if he could spot anything indicating her problem in her body language as she walked towards the chair and sat down. Shuichi, in turn, walked towards the opposite side of the desk and climbed onto one of the short stools. They weren't completely wooden like in the interrogation room, they had leather seats which proved much more comfortable. Mahiru sat down both silently and cautiously, carefully lowering herself onto the seat, one hand clutching her bag tightly as if it were the most precious thing she owned and the other holding onto the black plastic arm of the chair. Shuichi noticed this immediately - from what he had seen, Mahiru was usually confident and smiley. This was completely out of character for her. "A-Are you okay?" She only nodded in response, eyes drifting towards the table uncomfortably, biting her bottom lip. "Oh, um... Alright... So, you wanted to talk about something, right? What did you want to discuss?" He offered her another friendly smile, desperately wanting the girl to reply verbally. Instead of speaking, she began digging through her bag with a couple of fingers. Eventually, she pulled out a card, the back facing him. _A calling card...?_ The red haired girl still didn't respond, her face anxious and deadpan. Shuichi was beginning to run out of things to say to start the conversation. He occasionally received clients who were reluctant to speak due to shock or traumatic experiences, but even then he'd been briefed of the situation at hand. This time, Mahiru had come asking for him and not told anybody what she was coming for. If anything, she was just making things more difficult than they could have been. "I-Is that for the next case?" A nod. "Mahiru, why aren't you talking? It's like I'm talking to a wall. Can you please cooperate?" He spoke slowly, trying to reason with the girl.

She sighed heavily, putting the card face down on her lap. "I-I... I don't want to cry..." Her eyes began to well up, her voice shaky and meek like her frail physique.

Shuichi's smile faltered. He was surprised that she actually spoke. He was expecting to have to beg her a bit more before she finally cracked. "Cry? What about? It's okay - I'm a detective. I'm here to help."

Mahiru immediately regret opening her mouth. It was too late now - if she spoke then this would all get over and done with sooner and she could leave. "It's the card." 

"Can I see it?" She took no time to shake her head, making it more than clear that she wouldn't be cooperating any more. If she showed him that card her life would be over. She couldn't let him see it, and she'd go to any length to prevent the detective from viewing the image printed onto it. But of course, Shuichi didn't know this. He just thought that she was being stubborn about it because he lost her camera to the thief several days before. He _did_ feel bad about it; this was his second failure and he had no one to blame but himself for it. Exhaling through his nose, he knew he had to reason with her. "Mahiru. I need that card to catch the thief. He took your camera. Don't you want me to catch him and get it back for you? Please stop making this so difficult... There was no point of you even coming here today if you're not going to hand it over. If you're just going to sit there and make me struggle when I'm trying to help you, go home." It felt good to get that off his chest. It distracted him from his own dilemmas. And on top of that, he was sure she would be more willing to talk. Sure, he guilt tripped her and he felt terrible for having to do so, but what else could he have done at this point? She was being difficult and he was running out of options.

She lifted her head and looked Shuichi directly in the eye with a threatening gaze. "Do you really think I'm giving you a hard time over that camera? Sure, I'm upset that I've lost it and all my hard work but I wouldn't make you suffer too. I know it wasn't your fault. And I know that I'm what's stopping you from capturing the thief, but I can't help it. This card is blackmail against me so I won't call for help. I... I thought I could trust you so I came here to talk to you and you alone. I would give you the card but its just too big a risk." She looked as if she were about to cry, words spilling from her heart. Shuichi looked lost so she reluctantly continued her explanation. "I can't let you see that card because the hint is written over an old picture of me which I really can't show you under any circumstance. Sorry." 

Shuichi blinked. "What's so bad about that picture that I can't see it?" 

Mahiru slammed her hands down on the table. "Shut up, you filthy pervert! Mind your own business, will you?" Sitting back down trying to calm herself, the cogs began to turn in Shuichi's head. He finally understood why she was so reluctant to hand over the card, and it was all thanks to her unnecessary 'filthy pervert' comment. 

"Who would blackmail you like that, Mahiru?" Shuichi frowned, trying to sympathise with her. 

"If it's on the card then obviously the thief and his organisation. You're supposed to be a detective." She turned her head away, an aggravated expression painted across her freckled face. 

"I'm coming around for a second. Hide the card if you must, but I don't plan on looking." Shuichi stood up and walked around to Mahiru's side of the table where she hazardously watched his every move just in case he pulled something sneaky. In actual fact, the dark haired detective just wanted to take a pad of paper and a pen out from the desk drawer beside her. "Thanks." He sat back down on the stool and put the paper on the desk.

Mahiru looked nothing less than confused. "W-What are you doing?" She sat forwards in her chair a tiny bit to allow herself to inspect Shuichi from closer up. 

Shuichi tapped the paper twice with his pen. "Read out the clue and I'll write it down. That way, you won't have to show me the card. Make sure you tell me where each line ends so it's set out exactly like it is on the card." Seeing Mahiru smile at his idea made his heart heat up like he was finally doing something right after all he had screwed up on. Now if Mahiru cooperated, he would be able to get to work on capturing the phantom thief sooner. Putting him behind bars would be a piece of cake. Not to mention, that damn thief had called him, threatened him and made him feel unsafe in his own home - he was going to have to pay. Mahiru nodded and eagerly started reading out the hint on the card. After a few minutes of correcting Shuichi and making sure the hint was written identically, Mahiru stuffed the card back into her dark green bag with a sigh of relief. She was right to think that Shuichi could help her! 

_'A pair of blades, or perhaps more,_  
_Snatched, purloined, paper cuts galore._  
_Though, they aren't just any blades I seek._  
_The story isn't over. I'll see my beloved at the end of the week.'_

The hint sent chills down the detective's spine. Blades? Was he looking for a weapon? Paper cuts? A story? It all sent Shuichi into a spiral of bottomless confusion like an inescapable pit. But what perplexed Shuichi the most was  the final sentence. _'I'll see my beloved at the end of the week.'_ Was it talking about him? Or perhaps there was a stroke of luck that it was referring to part of the clue, or just there to make it rhyme. ...Or even to give an excuse to tell when the heist would commence. 

"Thank you for not making me show you the card. I'd probably die on the spot. You're really nice. Good luck on the investigation, by the way. I'm rooting for you!" Mahiru put her hand on top of Shuichi's and the boy felt her kindness and warmth spread throughout his body like a housefire. 

Having had enough of the contact, he carefully slipped his hand back under the table and grinned cheerfully. "It's no problem, really. As a detective, it's my job to make sure all clients are comfortable and happy. I'm glad you gave me the next clue, I'd be pretty lost without it." He stood up. "So if that's all then–" 

"Wait!" Mahiru stood up too, holding one hand up in front of her as if she were reaching out for the boy. 

The detective turned around. "Is something the matter?" 

Mahiru motioned for Shuichi to sit back down again before sitting back down herself. "Yeah. I know things about the thief and his organisation that nobody else does so... I thought that you would find the information helpful since you know nothing about them already. And yeah- I know that I could've told the police but the organisation would've come after me. Telling you is my safest option. Take notes if necessary, you might need them." She reached out for Shuichi's paper and flipped it over to give him some fresh writing space. 

"So that's why you haven't said anything sooner? Because of the thief and his organisation? What on earth did you do to get on their bad side?" Shuichi bit the lid of the pen and pulled it off, removing it from his mouth with his other hand and popping it onto the opposite end of the pen. 

She nodded. "I'll get onto that in a bit. I want to start from the beginning first." She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. For years now she'd wanted to bust them, to tell somebody other than herself during her mental breakdowns about the organisation and how cruel they were. Now it was her chance and she was more than desperate to take it. Her mind was exhausted as if it had been running from its own shadow. Running, running, running, the aching and burning following close behind clawing at her tired ankles, trying to drag her back by her sore limbs whilst she scrambled away kicking and screaming each time. A repetitive process of hide and seek with herself inside of her head trying to hide from the truth. The truth that she was trapped. The truth that she was just a toy. The truth that she couldn't do anything but _run._ And now, because of this kind-hearted detective sitting before her with a warm half-smile tugging at his lips, for the first time in years she felt as if finally she had a chance. And she wasn't going to back out now. She couldn't. "The phantom thief works for a small but incredibly intelligent organisation called DICE, hence the pair of dice on the calling cards. It took me a little while to figure out but I did make a few observations about the card, so if you're interested we can talk about those another time. A-Anyway... I used to date one of the members of DICE. His name was Gadget, before you ask. We soon broke up after about a year and a half because he left me for one of the other members of the organisation."

Shuichi began scribbling down on his paper as she spoke. He wanted to get every little detail down - everything was helpful in his mind. "Gadget? That's a strange name. Do you know his real one? If we catch him and arrest him, we can make him tell us who-" 

"No. It's a codename. They all call each other by those weird codenames. I think Gadget's girlfriend's name is something like Mineral? I don't know... It's been a long time so don't take my word for it. I don't know any of their real identities and whenever I saw any of the other members they all wore strange clown masks. I only know what Gadget looks like because we met outside of his work, although there's a chance he's changed his appearance. If you searched for him, though, you wouldn't find him. Their headquarters is hidden somewhere quite far from here." She interrupted Shuichi, but he wasn't mad. She had offered him some more interesting information. He wondered how she knew so much, however. 

It was suspicious to him how she knew about the location of headquarters. Could she, perhaps, have been member herself? He didn't want to believe it but it was beginning to appear that way. He was just going to have to find out himself. "Um... Mahiru? How do you know where their HQ is?"

The short haired red head looked taken aback, like Shuichi had caught her off guard. "Gadget once wanted to take me out but forgot his wallet or something so we had to drive back there so he could get it. Please don't get the wrong idea, Shuichi! I didn't see anything. I don't even know what his vehicle looks like, he'd always cover my eyes whilst approaching it and I'd stay in the back of the van. Oh and before you ask how I know it was a van, it was obvious. The way you had to open the back of it to get in made it a simple guess. So, back to the HQ talk... We had to drive back to HQ for Gadget but because I was in the back I had no idea where I was. I kept checking the time on my phone and it took around an hour to get there. Please don't suspect me. I don't know much." She hoped that would clear her name, knowing what Shuichi had been thinking.

"Oh, I see. So why are DICE blackmailing you? What did you do?" A change of topic might help the conversation run smoother. It would do no good to be too suspicious of Mahiru, he figured.

The girl's face twisted into something resembling worry or anxiousness or even fear, almost as if she didn't want to say because it was so terrible. Shuichi could only imagine what was about to come out of her mouth. "After Gadget dumped me for Mineral or whatever her name is, I began stalking the organisation to find out what exactly it is they did. I knew they'd be up to no good. I bought cameras which made it easier for me to spy on them and keep watch on all of them, but they soon caught me and wanted to use the calling card to shut me up about everything I knew." She fell quiet having a silent debate in her head deciding if she should share the next set of information or not. Could she trust Shuichi not to tell? Of course she could, he hadn't forced her to show him the card and he had dropped the topic a while ago. He wasn't going to get her into any trouble, right? She'd take the risk. This was all for him, after all. "You can't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you, alright?" Cold, hard olive green eyes glazed with profound trust and determination met warm golden ones. Not one of her facial features betrayed the emotion her eyes conveyed, stoic and unmoving. She was deathly serious. Shuichi knew that this _wasn't_ a joke. 

"It'll be kept between just me and you. I swear I won't tell a soul." He hovered a hand above hers to show that he, too, was serious. Mahiru let a fraction of a smile creep onto her slender face.

"Good... Thank you for agreeing to stay quiet. So what happened was six years ago, Gadget and I were dating and he suggested we have a photo shoot to commemorate half a year together." She shifted uncomfortably in the blue chair causing it to spin to the left slightly. She quickly used her feet to turn her back to face the worried detective. "Six months meant a great deal to the both of us - people used to tell us that we would never last more than a month so six whole months was something to rub in their faces. We took a few pictures together before he convinced me to take my shirt off so he could take pictures. God, it sounds awful when I have to explain it... I didn't really want to do it, but I wanted to make him happy. I didn't think anything would happen because of it..." She buried her face in her hands as she groaned.

"So on the card is that picture he took all those years ago?" Shuichi already knew the answer. Howbeit, as much as he didn't want to make her suffer, he had to hear it from the girl herself.

"Ugh. Yes. You can't tell anyone, it'll ruin me. I'll get into so much trouble! I was young and naive at the time - I really didn't know there would be repurcussions!" Panic flooded her entire body, from her frantic fast paced speech to her slim frame shaking. 

"Mahiru, it's okay. I've ready promised to not tell anyone." Shuichi couldn't believe what he had heard. Well, that wasn't completely true. He'd had to solve cases all the time along the same lines so this wasn't all that different - but Mahiru? It shocked him. It made him angry that people could be so cruel. It made him angrier that the people responsible for her suffering were related to the thief. He was going to make them all pay. "I'll make sure I catch the thief as soon as I can. Oh, and I'll capture Gadget too for what he's put you thorough."

The photographer tensed up once again. "If you catch him you're going to have to give a reason! If that happens then I'll get into a lot of trouble. I'm sorry... Please don't involve yourself in this." As much as Shuichi didn't want to drop it, he understood. Perhaps she was right. For now he would drop it, but sooner or later he'd have the entire organisation behind bars where they belong.

"I see. I apologise for being so pushy. I'll investigate the hint privately and won't tell anyone here about the card. That way, everything we've discussed is kept confidentially between us. Is that okay with you?" He folded the paper in half and half again and rolled the pen over the desk. Mahiru picked it up and put it back into the desk drawer for Shuichi, who was grateful for the action.

"Yeah. Thank you so much. Ah, wait. Before I go there's one more thing I need to tell you." She sat up straight. "Some words of warning."

"Warning?" All Shuichi could think about was the threats he had received. It panicked him. She couldn't possibly know, right?

Mahiru nodded slowly. " _Never_ trust DICE. Not under any circumstance, no matter what they say or do. Don't trust the thief, don't trust Gadget and don't trust anyone in the organisation that approaches you. Remember, no matter what, _do not_ trust DICE. They will _ruin your life._ " Shuichi took her warning more than seriously, and what frightened him the most was the fact the Mahiru was speaking from experience. Shuichi had trusted the thief when we broke into his apartment, a dumb decision, really. Mahiru was right - you can't trust any of them. He'd remember her words. "They've been blackmailing me for years now. The reason why I travel so much is so I can try to escape them, but no matter how far or fast you run, they will always catch you."

Shuichi was only just beginning to understand how fearsome the thief's organisation really was. Little did he know, this was only a tiny portion of what they had to offer. "How long have you been hiding from them?" 

"Five years." The dark haired detective was taken aback by the girl's quick answer along with how casually she spoke as if it were a normal thing. Although, it was normal in her daily life. 

Shuichi let out a drawn-out sigh, sympathetic for what the girl had to go through. That settled it. Next time he saw the thief he was going down. _No hesitations._ "I'm sorry, it must be difficult for you." 

"You get used to it, really." Mahiru said, her voice cheerful and upbeat as she tried to lighten the depressing mood she had caused. 

Shuichi stood up and stalked towards the door. "Thanks for telling me all of this. I'll bring down DICE - just you wait." His voice was full of confidence and determination, but could he really take down the fearsome organisation he suspected were threatening him? Deep down he wasn't so sure, but he'd still give it a shot. He unlocked the door and opened it, standing beside it so he wasn't obstructing the exit. 

Mahiru followed him over to the door, clutching her small bag in her right hand. "It's _you_ who _I_ need to thank. It really helped getting this off of my chest. I wish you the best of luck with your investigation, Shuichi. I need to hurry and leave; I've got a photo shoot booked for half an hour. Bye!" She hurriedly left the room, a smile on her face. Mahiru Koizumi finally held a spec of hope within her for the future.

After watching the girl rush down the hallway Shuichi closed the door once again and went back over to the desk. He sat down, this time taking the comfortable dark blue armchair on wheels rather than the leather seated stools. The young apprentice detective took the paper he had written on and unfolded it, flattening it out on the table top before him and smoothening it with his hands. He decided to recap his notes before he left to work on the clue. A better understanding of what he was dealing with would never hurt anyone, right? Right.

Shuichi had learned that the organisation the thief belonged to was named DICE, hence the pair of dice on the back of each calling card. Within DICE were at least three members - the phantom thief, Gadget and 'Mineral' or, simply put, Gadget's girlfriend. Somehow, he was sure that there was a lot more of them than just three - it would be odd how they were able to accomplish so much with only the trio of them. Then again, they were pretty remarkable people. Shuichi would just have to find out for himself. In addition, not only were they remarkable, they were dangerous people who were not to be trusted under any circumstances. Mahiru once trusted a member and it got her here: a life full of running and hiding like a hamster in a cage where escape was a mere dream, trapped inevitably. They were blackmailing the girl for having information on them... Wait-- that couldn't possibly mean that they'd come after Shuichi too, could it? He shuddered at the thought. Mahiru was right; keeping things like this to yourself was the wisest thing to do. He finally understood the gravity of the situation at hand. Perhaps it was better for the detective to stay quiet about it after all. If his uncle asked then he'd answer, but he was the only person who he'd give this information to. If DICE were to find out, they would surely cause them both a lot of grief.

The golden eyed boy quickly pocketed the notes he had taken just in case anyone was watching him. The possibility of that happening was very, very low, but he couldn't help his paranoia after yesterday's events. He sauntered towards the door and left the room, heading back towards the lobby quickly and quietly. He planned on going straight home to work on cracking the code until the familiar hoarse voice of a familiar old man stopped him.

"Ah, Shuichi! Come here for a minute. I need to talk to you." Shuichi snapped his head towards the source of the voice behind the reception desk in the grey walled room, having had his delicate train of thought shattered into a billion tiny fragments. 

He did as the voice requested and walked over to the desk. "Hm? What do you need?" He didn't want to have to explain Mahiru's situation to his uncle, but he didn't want to come off as being rude either. He quickly plotted some responses to scenarios that could come up his head. 

The older man peeked up over the desk at his nephew's face. "What did Miss Koizumi want to talk about? She refused to tell me no matter how many times I asked and rephrased the question. You _did_ manage to get her to talk, right? She seemed to be in a hurry when she left a little while ago." He didn't intend to be nosy or intrude in her personal life; knowing everything going on with every detective and every case was his job. This wasn't an exception. 

The older detective couldn't prove if Shuichi was lying or not since he wouldn't have known what happened in the room, so he was free to make up any reason if he wished. However, on the spot he wasn't a quick thinker when it came to lies. "Nothing much, really. She just wanted to give me some information on the organisation the thief works for. That's all. She was worried about who would be the right person to talk to about it and didn't want to talk to the police. Because we're already acquaintances she thought coming to me would be easier." He hoped his lie was plausible. Well, technically it was only a half lie - the part about her telling him about DICE was true at least. 

"Oh. From her body language earlier I thought that her condition would be more serious." He picked up the sheet he was filling in and moved it to the side, replacing the empty space on the counter with an almost identical form. "What did you learn?" 

There was no need to lie here, he only needed to control the amount of information he gave away. That wasn't lying. "The thief belongs to an organisation who go by the name of DICE. Apparently, they've been around for a while. I'm not sure just how long, but I can assume perhaps even longer than six years. To summarise, they're not a new group." He wanted to mention other details such as how many members he knew of currently, and how they were cruel and dangerous people, but it would be disrespectful to Mahiru. He couldn't break his promise. 

Shuichi's uncle nodded as he took in the information. "DICE hm? I'll look into it. Thank you, enjoy the rest of your day. I'll contact you the next time I see you." He waved and immediately got back to work, this time thankfully not playing silly number games. 

"It's no problem. See you later." He waved back, even though the other man wasn't watching at this point, and turned to leave. His plans for the rest of this hot 28th of July were to go straight home and figure out just what the hint from the calling card pointed to. He had set himself an internal deadline - Friday morning - to figure out the meaning behind it. After that, he feared that there would not be enough time to keep digging. And so, he left the extremely stuffy building and entered the sunny streets, the sun as blinding as he recalled from the many weeks of sunshine filled days before. There was a lot on his mind, everything was tough. Right now, however, he just wanted a nap. And that's just what he'd do. 

-

"Shade. Can you come over here for a minute? There's something I need to show you." The mauve haired girl waved over to her colleague who was at the other side of the room inspecting their leader's throne, never tearing her eyes from the largest of the four bright screens. Pigtails sat in front of him on the red carpeted steps leading up to the seat, fiddling with a mask in her hands. Huge sound-cancelling headphones covered the girl at the monitor's ears, along with her expensive hoop earrings her boyfriend had bought her. She couldn't hear the high ranking member approach her, nor was she expecting him to rest an elbow on her shoulder, so nobody could blame her for jumping at the sudden contact. "Don't creep up on me like that!" She removed her headphones; the source of the issue, and placed them around her neck. 

"I didn't. You called me over so you should have expected me, Minerva. It's no one's fault but your own." He leaned off of the girl's shoulder to stand by her side. "What do you need me for?" 

Minerva brushed her short hair behind her ears as she turned to face the long fringed brunet, hair always covering the left side of his face completely. "I managed to hack into the detective's phone. As a result, I've been able to access his text messages, every social media account he owns - which is just Powwow, by the way - his emails, pictures he takes, sends or receives and best of all... His phone calls. He sent a call and received one this morning, both in the same hour."

Shade frowned, howbeit impressed with her work. "And how is this going to help us?" 

She turned back to face the screen, holding the headphones out to Shade. "I've been listening in on his phone calls. You know, you really can learn a lot in those short conversations? The call he sent was this morning at almost half past eight. The person he called was... Kaede Akamatsu, as listed on her contact details. Ah, that's funny, we have her phone number now too." Caught up in her habit of frequently going off track whilst explaining something important, Shade decided to cut her off and wake her up. 

"What did they talk about?" He removed his left hand from his pocket, his long, baggy sleeve just about cloaking his ghostly white, slender hand underneath the unripped fabric as he took the headphones. 

"Well, our pesky detective Shuichi Saihara will be at Kaede's house on Friday night to sleep over, so at least we're able to keep tabs on his plans." She began tapping away at her keyboard again as Shade put the headphones on keeping one ear uncovered so he could still hear if he was being spoken to. 

After he had adjusted them the way he wanted them, he asked another question. "What about the call after that? Was it another sleepover invitation?" He teased, though there wasn't a hint of playfulness in his voice. He was stressed out, and he just wanted Minerva to get to the point already. 

She giggled. "No, no. Its actually more interesting than that. You'd be shocked." She hovered the arrow from her mouse over a video - or more specifically a recording. "Listen to this." _Click._ The phone call recording began to play in Shade's ears.

Minerva watched for a minute as Shade's face contorted from his usual calm expression to one of mild anger and frustration. "You mean to tell me that Mahiru screwed herself over willingly? She's more reckless than we anticipated. The boss' plan failed, it appears..." He had heard enough. The recording still playing, the tall boy in white removed the black headphones and handed them back to Minerva. 

Pigtails finally looked up from where she was sitting on the stairs, having eavesdropped on their conversation. "Maybe you should tell the boss? Perhaps he had a backup plan he was hiding from us. Just call him in here or something. Dunno, just think it's best to consult him and see what he says about it." 

Agreeing with his younger sister, Shade put his watch up to his mouth and called for their high-spirited leader to come to the control room _now._ Within a few minutes the purple haired boy himself came skipping into the room joyfully, clearly in a marvelous mood with a bright grin on his face as the mechanical door rattled open. "Nee-heehee~ What do you need, Shade. I'm a _very busy man,_ y'know? Busy planning world domination, though we're already so close to obtaining that! I'm so excited!" He climbed onto the back of Minerva's chair, hooking his arms around the tall back of the furniture. His face fell when he saw the less than impressed look on his second in command's. "Hey... What's wrong? Ooh! You mad about something? You _mad_?" He chirped the second 'mad' teasingly to antagonise Shade further, however he was only being playful. 

Shade sighed exasperatedly. "Your plan backfired. Mahiru Koizumi is meeting with the detective. Your plan failed and now the detective will _yet again_ be getting in our way. I'm getting so sick and tired of him. What do you suggest we do?" 

The boss feigned a shocked expression. He knew this was going to happen from the very beginning. In his eyes everything was going according to plan. "Well, I did say that the scheme had a 50/50 chance of going accordingly. There was a possibility that Mahiru would seek help, and I was willing to take that chance. I must applaud her bravery, though. Too bad she's probably in a _lot_ of deep, _deep_ trouble right now. How sad. Anyways, we won't be bothered by Mahiru anymore. I doubt that stalker knows much about the organisation, too. Honestly, she's harmless. It's fine. The plan will work out." He dragged out the word 'lot' to emphasise his point. He was pleased that he was going to see the detective again, if he could figure out what the hint on the calling card meant, that is. Who knows? Maybe he would be too distracted by the nude picture of Mahiru to concentrate. He giggled to himself, amused by the ludicrous thought.

Pigtails stood up, hoping her boss hadn't seen her sitting on the steps below his precious throne, and sauntered towards the trio with her hands on her hips. "How can you be so sure?"

Grinning with a snake-like look of satisfaction, he leaned backwards to stare upside-down directly into the eyes of the twin-tailed brunette approaching him. "Just trust me." He winked and, pretending to ignore the tight, overwhelming light-headed feeling suffocating his skull, the thief stood back up straight before hopping back onto the ground. 

Shade turned from the three and stepped towards the door. "Good work, Minerva. Keep it up. If you find anything else you need to report, contact me immediately." 

"Yes sir." The woman at the computer put the headphones back on and began scavenging through the contents of the oblivious detective's phone once again, all four screens coming to life as she clicked through several files. 

Shade continued towards the door, scanning his hand on the fingerprint reader. "Pigtails, boss, come with me. The next heist is only two days away. We don't have much time left to prepare. With the detective in our way, we have to make this _perfect._ " Shade left the room as the two other members followed behind obediently. 

"Oh yeah! Pigtails?" The short boy tugged at her sleeves as they walked. 

She edged away from him in an attempt to free herself from her boss' grip. "What?"

He gave her a large smile, flashing his teeth at her maliciously. "Don't sit on the stairs again, _'kay_?" His voice was soft and sickeningly sweet enough to give anyone who heard him a toothache.

Pigtails laughed nervously in response. Damn, he did see her after all. She thought she had gotten away with it. "Got it... It won't happen again haha..." She turned her head to face the opposite direction, her cheeks flushed red from embarrassment.

"Both of you shut up and follow me." The tallest of the three ordered as they continued down the metal plated corridor towards the lab.

Smug, cunning and intelligent as he was, the leader of their organisation would never have expected Minerva to gain access to his favourite toy's phone. Nor would he have expected her to be reading the messages the two had exchanged over Powwow right that instant. If he wanted to continue his game, he would have to be careful. It wasn't easy living a double life, especially when he was going behind the backs of nine people he had deemed as trustworthy. It seemed that if he wanted his own happy ending, he would soon have to pick a side.

_That is, if the sides hadn't already been decided by fate - deceit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took forever to get out. On my wattpad I usually post about what's happening with the story and when chapters are going to be out, which I don't do on here.  
> Basically, I felt genuinely horrible - too horrible to bother writing and every time I went to write something I really just couldn't do it. So, I took a break for a 2 weeks and I feel much better now. This took around 2 days to write (excluding the couple thousand words I wrote before the break) so I hope it's not too awful. I promise I'll try harder to write future chapters and I hope you guys continue to enjoy the story. Thanks xx


	11. The Other Side

Back when she was younger, life was so simple. She had a roof over her head, food on the table and at a snap of her spoiled fingers she got whatever she wanted. Until _the incident,_ that was. After that tragic day her childhood had been stolen from her - snatched from right under her small nose. She would lay in bed at night, eyes glistening in the moonlight from the tears welling up and slipping down her cheeks. _Why?_ She would always ask herself, crying endlessly over her loss. _Why did you have to go?_ Unimaginable amounts of guilt suffocated her, filling her lungs up spitefully, drowning her. She was supposed to be the big sister but she let her go. She _lost her. She's never coming back and it's all **your fault.**_ If she hadn't taken her eyes off of the smaller girl, nothing would have happened. And she regret it, she really did. The last thing she saw of the younger girl was her long brown hair as she was pulled into the checkered van before the door slammed shut and it sped off. With the vehicle unmarked, what was there that she could do? She was only ten, and her innocence had been stolen right before her teary eyes, her throat burning as she screamed at the top of her lungs for help running as fast as her little legs would carry her down the street. When no help came she finally realised what a vile world this was. It was one of many abductions - ten in total, the news reported. Ten children went missing in ten consecutive days; a pair of siblings ostensibly went missing too. No one could solve the case, not even the boy who had accidentally solved an unsolvable murder case. It was hopeless. The girl thought that maybe she would have been better off if she had been taken with her sister, or even if she just took the smaller girl's place. A horrible thing to wish for, she knew, but who could blame the young girl? It was her own fault it happened for being so irresponsible. She was a bad sister. She didn't deserve to be appreciated or loved. Soon enough the surly realisation finally hit her, slicing through the girl's already shattered heart, that if she wasn't careful she'd lose everybody. And that's when she began to panic about the boy. What if she lost him too? The thought of losing such an important person in her life tore her up. That was the moment she decided to never let him go. She would keep him close, protect him, love him. The girl would never let him feel anything like she had ever felt. She would protect him from the wrath of the treacherous, cruel world and make sure that he was always happy. This overwhelming feeling coursing through her veins?

Despair.

-

The three DICE members made their way down the long corridor, countless metal plates merging together into one gloomy blur as they sped past. The thief often reminisced on the past when the whole organisation dug out these passages by hand using the shovels they had made together, no machinery included in the process. It took months of hard labour, sleeping down in the muddy pits they used to hide from the world. They were young, but undoubtedly intelligent. After they had completed the task of digging out enough space to live comfortably, then came the job of covering up all the soil and dirt around them to make their underground prison habitable. This, too, took months of slaving away. At times they had thought that they should just give up, if it had not been for the thief encouraging them with passionate pep talks about their future - a happy future where they ruled the world. Where no one could tell them what was right and what was wrong. That was the day when he became their leader, it was a role he, and still to this very day, took extreme amounts of pride in. 

After a minute of walking, Shade pressed his hand against the fingerprint reader which granted the trio access to the lab - a place where the purple haired criminal had only recently been allowed access to due to him messing about with chemicals which had resulted in an explosion. Luckily, no one was hurt so the violet eyed imp was forgiven. On the downside, all of the other members had decided and agreed to ban him from entering the room and so set the fingerprint reader on the door to deny the boy access. If he tried to get in an alarm would go off which could be heard all over headquarters. Sadly, no one had told him this second part so when he thought he could sneak in one night he was given quite the shock. He never attempted to sneak into the lab again. 

The door clattered open to reveal two men hard at work in the spacious workshop. Beside the door on the wall were countless safety items which both boys were very fussy about people using when they entered the room. Safety came first, they'd always say (though often there were times when the skinnier of the two would be reckless and start tinkering with electronics without using any form of protection). Hung up on pegs were gas masks, goggles, rubber gloves, aprons, visors and almost anything else that they could use to protect themselves in the dangerous laboratory. The ceiling was high, littered with smoke alarms and fire alarms for if any of their colleagues' experiments got out of hand. Big, bright lights acted as a makeshift sun as they shone down illuminating the whole place nicely. In the centre of the room was a large, rectangular, metallic box where one of the boys was working. It acted as a stand as he worked on disassembling a certain device and transferred specific components to the bigger contraption to the left of it. On the sides of the silver cuboid were blue lights dotted around the edges whilst a zigzagging pattern danced between them. The short boy in white thought that it added to the sci-fi feel, so encouraged that pointless feature to be installed. It wasn't hurting anyone, so the other members let their leader have his fun. At the far left of the room was a wooden table pressed up against the wall below two rows of shelves holding various tools from spanners to hammers, screwdrivers to wrenches, it was all there. On the table top was a camera - a familiar one the thief had used four days before to take degrading yet amusing pictures of the detective. The camera had been opened up and its electrical components were sticking out as if it were a small animal being dissected for the sake of science. The slimmer of the two men rushed back and forth between the tool bench and and table in the centre of the room in a slight hurry as he pushed himself to work quickly. There was a space at the back of the room where the wall continued further down to create space for a place where chemicals could be held safely. A transparent plastic sheet covered the gap between the two walls revealing a cartoonishly round man who was working, a glass vile in his hand as he tipped the neon orange contents into a test tube. There was a white table in front of him with all different types of containers filled with eccentric coloured chemicals lining the wall. Underneath the table was a box, padlocked to keep up-to-no-good trespassers - or more specifically, their trouble-making boss - away from the more dangerous chemicals and substances that shouldn't be tampered with. On the right wall was a simple doorway leading to a storage room of sorts where old projects and contraptions were kept in case they were needed in the future. There wasn't a door separating the two rooms, just another simple plastic sheet. 

Shade approached the relatively short blond boy with pineapple-like hair which was spiked up at the top, to inspect what the boy was doing as he cautiously soldered some components together. "Gadget." He waited for the green eyed boy to finish before continuing to speak to allow the boy to focus and avoid burning himself. 

The boy named Gadget stood up, setting down his soldering iron beside the trinket he was working on and smiled proudly at his higher-up. He wiped the sweat that had begun to collect on his forehead with a long white sleeve which had been previously rolled up, before lifting the slightly fogged up goggles from his eyes. "Hey Shade. What can I help ya with?" Gadget was what you would call an airhead. He was laid-back and loved to joke around a lot, but that definitely did not mean he was either careless or reckless. When given a task to complete, he fulfilled his juties and carried out his work with utmost precision and accuracy. He donned similar clothing to the rest of the organisation with a white jacket, strapless white trousers, black loafers and, to avoid getting stuck in machinery, he wore the shortest checkered scarf of all. 

Shade leaned down to inspect the incomplete contraption on the lit up stand. "How much progress have you made so far?" He asked. He stood back up straight without a complaint when Gadget held his gloved hands out in front of him, ushering him away from his work. 

"Uh... Well, you see," He circled his finger in the direction of the camera on the tool bench as he struggled to string the words of his explication together. "I can't cut the components properly so I can't get the measurements one hundred percent right. I need the utensils from the next heist really soon so I can complete this quicker. For now, I'm only going to be able to implement the parts I have managed to get right."

Pigtails poked the blond boy's arm as she slipped in the space between the two men sneakily. "So... Can't you like, snap them or something?" She shrugged as she put her hands on her hips, using her elbows to shove her boss, who was standing beside her, out of her way. The purple haired boy yelped as he fought the strong urge to push her back seeing as she was standing right beside the project Gadget had been slaving away working on day and night. All that hard work going to waste could be a travesty and it was too late to restart now. It would take too much time, to top it off. He sighed and puffed his cheeks out childishly, a pout on his face as he folded his arms.

Gadget grabbed the girl by the shoulders and steered her body in the opposite direction of the device. "No. That would break them and make them unusable." He turned towards the two boys. "The project is just over half way done. Maybe. Oh, and boss, thanks for your help gathering the supplies we needed in order for this project to take place. This has all been made possible because of you and your efforts." He smiled cheerily, as he usually did. It was rare to see Gadget without one of his 'dumb, stupid, idiotic smiles' (as Aergia would often describe them) or cracking ridiculous jokes that no one but himself, or occasionally their leader, would laugh at.

"Aw shucks." The purple haired criminal stratched the back of his head, flattered. He couldn't help the crooked smile creeping up onto his lips as he attempted to refrain himself from grinning. "That's so nice of you to say. I do try my very best, I'll have you know." Winking at his subordinate, he left Shade and Pigtails discussing plans with Gadget and skipped over to the back of the room where the other male was working.

As the leader approached the restricted area, the taller boy pulled back the plastic sheet, removed the mask covering his mouth and nose as well as his goggles and exited the small corner. As soon as he stepped out he took no time in inhaling the fresh air desperately. It wasn't exactly 'fresh' but it certainly felt like it considering he had just been closed in with chemicals. He eyed the small leader with a raised brow. "Woah. You're not going in there, buster. You know what happened last time." He motioned towards the browny-orange burn marks across the wall left from the last time the imp had accessed the hazardous room full of treacherous chemicals.

The boss rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Yeah, yeah, big deal, Boomer. I already said I was sorry so please just drop it. I wasn't gonna go in there in the first place!" He pouted once again and mumbled under his breath. "Stupid head."

The man named Boomer visibly sighed, his immense relief evident as the look of worry disappeared from his round face. "Praise the Lord. Don't you dare cross the line." He stepped to the side cautiously, watching the shorter boy's every move as he edged closer to the wooden table. 

The boss hopped forwards and backwards again repetitively, his typical mischievous smirk painted across his pale face. "Line? What line? There's no lines!" The smug expression on his face never left as he intentionally deceived his friend's wishes, fully aware of the presence of the yellow stripe across the floor. 

"Don't push your luck otherwise you'll be banned from coming in here again, but this time it'll be permanent. Got it?" The other boy nodded. "Good. So, what did you want over here anyway? I was working." Said Boomer. He peeled the rubber gloves off of his fingers as he plopped them one after another on the tool table, along with his other gear he was wearing a moment ago, careful to not touch the camera. 

The leader crept over to the table where Boomer was, leaning his elbows on the wood and staring up into his beady blue eyes. "Well," He grinned, "I was just curious to see how my _most favourite_ science nerd of all time was doing."

Boomer tutted as he turned back towards his work station. "Really? That's all? I don't need your flattery, but I appreciate it. I'm doing just fine so if you don't mind I'd like to–"

"Actually," The menace interrupted, reaching out to grab onto the one-piece white suit which clung to his body. It was surprising how it still allowed the male room to breathe considering how much the fabric had to hold. It was also surprising how such small feet in black loafers could support the heavy weighted man. The trademark chequered scarf all DICE members wore was large as it sat tied up on his left shoulder. The thief continued, now with Boomer's full attention. "I was going to ask how progress on my _evil weapons of destruction_ was coming along." He beamed innocently, his face masking the words leaving his mouth as something sweet and pure. 

His charade was quickly put to its tragic demise when the heavier male responded, raising a thin black eyebrow which he had drawn on. "You mean the smoke bombs?" 

"Yes." 

"I've made a few, they're in the back there." He pointed behind him with his thumb. "Although... I'm not satisfied with those. I've been trying to fit more explosion into smaller cans so it's easier to cover more area, as well as take up less space on your person. So, instead of only being able to carry two, you'd be able to hold perhaps four or even five and still have greater results!" His deep voice portrayed nothing but pride as he explained his work to the boss who looked incredibly interested, immersed in the miraculously intriguing world of chemistry. 

The energetic boy hopped up and down eagerly like an excited child who had been promised a trip to the best place on Earth. "I wanna test one! Please? Pretty please? Will it help if I keep saying please? With a fat, juicy cherry on top? And world domination?" He used both of his small hands to shake the other boy, clutching both of his sleeves with an iron grip. 

Pushing the other boy gently back by his shoulders, Boomer steadied himself. "I'll do that myself. It could be dangerous. I can't have our amazing leader hurting himself, can I?" 

The disappointed leader let go and his hands returned to his sides. "I suppose not..."

"You're gonna be using them soon, don't worry. Chin up, kid." Boomer reassured him. He untied the apron covering a slim portion of his front, searching the almost bare walls for a clock. "Uh... You don't happen to know what the time is, do you?" 

The childish boy's face lit up. "As a matter of fact, I do indeed. It is..." He took his time checking his watch as he made long, drawn-out humming noises. "Time for dinner. I'm hungry!" 

Boomer would've preferred the actual time, but this worked too, he supposed. He had learned to tolerate his boss' immature behaviour, not that he wasn't a fan of it at all. That was the complete opposite of his true feelings on the subject - the bald man was happy that his boss still had a strong connection with his inner child, even though it had become more of his outer child at this point. Everyone else in DICE, more or less, had matured and lost the ability to joke around or have fun, so this was a refreshing change. "You're right. I'll head down to the kitchen now; Smile should already be there with the new groceries I asked him to pick up." He raised his voice to call out to the other members in the room. "If you guys wanna head down to the dining hall in a bit I'll have something whipped up for you!" 

Shade quickly turned towards the duo from where he was standing talking to the blond inventor and nodded. "Alright. Thank you, Boomer." The four remaining DICE members nonchalantly watched as Boomer hurried out of the room to leave for the kitchen. The short leader cheerfully waved him off with a bright smile. "Boss. Come on, we're leaving."

"Alrighty!" He called back, skipping over to the group without an ounce of care for lab safety.

Shade swiftly spun on his heels and began sauntering towards the door, Pigtails following close behind not wanting to be abandoned by her big brother. "Goodbye, Gadget. I'll see you at dinner. Don't push yourself too hard." He waited for a 'thank you' before having Pigtails open the door for him, not wanting to have to withdraw his hand from his pocket again. 

The boss, however, stayed in the laboratory with Gadget momentarily. His glistening purple eyes stared curiously up at the project in enthralled awe. This, right before him was his future. _Their_ future. A veracious smile snagged the corners of his mouth, a wave of irrepressible happiness washing over him. They were so close to achieving what they had always dreamed of! Only a couple more heists and weeks, maybe months, of hard work and the project, no doubt, would be completed. Though this wasn't the soul purpose DICE had been created for, it seemed it had almost been fulfilled and the flaming satisfaction burning in his chest he gained from it was inextinguishable, the proud flame of his perseverance and resolve eternal. 

On the contrary, the fire inside him scorched him and singed him in a blazing assault of guilt. It was a strange, uncomfortable feeling, to say the least. The menacing imp was usually so sincere with his words and actions when it came to his fellow DICE members, so almost anything he did was purely honest meaning he'd never have to deal with feeling bad about it afterwards. This time, howbeit, this was not the case. He didn't want to have to betray his friends. In fact, the guilt had finally caught up with the boy who made a living running away from his problems. All he wanted was a little fun for once - breaking his friends' trust was the last thing he ever wanted! After the amusement park incident, Shade had given him a stern warning, one last chance to prove to him and the rest of DICE that he was still on their side. He had tried desperately to argue back that he did it for them to keep the detective distracted and out of their way, which was only partly true, but the high ranking member wasn't having any of it. He didn't want to have to pick a side - he could either ditch the detective and dominate the world with DICE without breaking their trust, live a life where everything had to be taken with utmost seriousness without any space for fun, and remain safe and hidden from the cruelty of the outside world. Or, the alternative option was he could continue going behind his friends' backs so he could mess with the detective some more whilst simultaneously living a risky life of crime with the added danger of finally being captured by the boy and losing his friends altogether. It was a ridiculously tough decision for him to make. Which would benefit him more? Which would cause more damage? There were so many questions he was unable to answer and it drove him insane with frustration. 

Ever since Shuichi Saihara had wandered along, his life had spiralled downhill. Of course, he was a nosy, intrusive pest, and of course, he always got in their way, but the navy haired apprentice detective was like a damn drug - there was something addictive about the boy that made him want to go back for more. Was it the way he was so easy to manipulate? Was it the way he panicked and hesitated whilst putting on an admirably brave front fueled by sheer terror? Was it the way he was such an easy and fun target to pick on? He didn't know. He didn't care. He didn't like the detective at all, in fact he couldn't care any less about him, he was just a simple toy he could play with to temporarily cure his boredom. In actuality, he _hated_ him almost as much as the detective despised _him._ Good. That was just how he liked it. He was the antagonist, after all; he wasn't supposed to be liked. And if he was? Well that was just too bad, wasn't it? Even if he had been nothing but sickly sweet to Shuichi at the theme park, it meant nothing at all. He was only telling him what he wanted to hear, nothing more, nothing less. He didn't give a damn about the detective, or his past, or his confidence issues; all he cared about was playing with him and his feelings. They were both like tracing paper, so easily torn and destroyed, forlorn as ashes. It was pitiful, really. He couldn't stop the burst of excitement exploding within him like the powerful tides on the coasts as the anticipation for the next heist intoxicated him. He'd see the detective again, and have a great time making a mess of him. Where the robbery was taking place allowed the thief to plot and scheme all the things he planned to torture the shy detective with. It was going to be quite romantic, he thought, though that romance would be short lived and powered by electrifying malice. 

That reminded him- he reached into his jacket and pulled out a small black card, then slid it across the surface where Gadget was inspecting the components scattered across his work area. "Here you go! I worked my magic and," He spun his finger as if it were a wand, "Voila! Magic! I told you I'd get it back. So... Complement me. Or something."

Gadget beamed gratefully, eyes full of gratitude and ruffled his leader's hair. "Thanks a ton. Can you try and retrieve the others for me too? I'd appreciate that a lot if you could." He picked up the card and quickly slipped it into his own white jacket with a friendly beam. 

The short boy snorted at the ridiculous question. "Duh! Of course I can. I'm a genius!" He gloated in a charmingly playful yet condescending tone, puffing out his chest in a narcissistic yet heroic stance. 

"Great! I'm gonna get back to work now. I'm going to finish this little bit before I eat." The blond male leaned down to inspect the inside of the incomplete device, a small screwdriver in his hand. 

"Boss? Hurry up. We don't have all evening." An annoyed yet calm male voice echoed from down the hall. 

"Coming!" The sneaky thief hollered back as he sprinted swiftly from the room. Gadget watched him leave in the corner of his eye with an eloquent smile before continuing to attach the electrical components. As for the calling card? He'd have to give it to Minerva later. Right now, he had work to do. 

-

He opened his sleepy, golden eyes and was met with a dingy darkness he wasn't used to seeing just as he woke up. There wasn't any sunlight resting upon his skin, waking him up gently. Rather, all he could see from where he was laying was the white ceiling of his living room. Shuichi had returned home from his meeting with Mahiru the previous day and retrieved his laptop, as well as a few other bits and pieces he found useful for taking notes, and had spent the rest of the day researching anything he could about what the card might have been suggesting. Whilst in the middle of conducting said research, he had fallen asleep on the sofa.

He sat up and stretched his arms above his head, hearing his back click satisfyingly at the lazy action. His sore neck ached from the uncomfortable position he had slept in, but he cracked that too, nevertheless. With a yawn he looked down to the floor beside the sofa, his laptop no longer on his legs where it was the night before. As he suspected, the electronic was on its side on the floor, the screen black and charger disconnected. _Great,_ he internally groaned, _it's dead, probably broken, too._ He reached down to pick it up, placing it carefully on the coffee table hoping that it hadn't been damaged by the fall. Scattered across the floor were the papers he had used to write notes on, along with the information he had on DICE and the calling card hint from Mahiru. 

He slid off of the black couch onto his feet and bent down to pick up the papers, ordering them neatly as he scooped them up. On top of the pile he had gathered was a spider diagram he had drawn in an attempt to decode the calling card's taunting clue. This particular sheet of paper only focused on the lines talking about 'blades'. The only things he could think of that fit the description for a 'pair or blades' were rollerblades or even a pair of scissors, but what would the thief need with either of those? If DICE wanted scissors or rollerblades then surely they could just buy their own - neither objects were valuable like the amethyst or camera. Due to this, Shuichi had searched the web for 'limited edition scissors' and 'limited edition rollerblades', along with possibly hundreds of reworded versions of the phrases. Nothing stood out to him. It seemed hopeless - how was he going to figure it out before morning? And on top of that, if he _could_ figure it out then where would the heist be located? With a dejected sigh, he pushed the papers onto the table alongside his laptop and reached down to pick up an old book he had about weaponry which he used for work when necessary - blades such as scissors included. As he attempted to pick the book up by the corner, the paper skidded across the length of the detective's fingertip. He threw it onto the table with a hissing wince, immediately squeezing the sides of his finger to stop the thin line of claret that was forming from spilling down his hand. 

He panicked, looking around frantically for anything he could use to cover the ridulously painful yet tiny wound up as he sprinted in his black pajamas into the kitchen. Hesitantly letting his finger go, he rummaged through the drawers and cabinets in the room for anything he could possibly use to stop the pain shooting through his index finger. He scrambled for a box of plasters as he ripped it from the back of the shelf and dropped it onto the counter beside the sink. His bloody fingers fumbled for the cold tap whilst he used his other to maneuver the box open and tear a plaster from the packet. As soon as he had turned the tap on, his finger was immediately forced under it and the freezing rush of water worked its way across the torn skin. He released a shaky sigh at the unpleasant sting, digging the nail of his thumb into the side of his finger to take his mind elsewhere. He watched the small slit in his skin disappear, camouflaged, the slim line of blood vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. Shuichi turned off the tap, dried his fingers on a paper towel and quickly got to work putting the plaster over the cut, carefully making sure it wasn't going to come off. He twisted his finger around, inspecting his handiwork as shoved the box of plasters back where it came from. He left the kitchen, now annoyed by both the thief and his paper cut, to continue with his day. Hopefully later he would be able to crack the clue on the calling card - he had a feeling he was on the right track. 

-

The door slammed open abruptly, the echo interrupting the deafening silence the captive had been submerged in. The girl's aching body was too exhausted to react to that same unsettling sound she had heard every day. She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting in that same wooden chair, hands secured to metal beams which shocked her every time she disobeyed an order or failed to answer a question to an appropriate extent. In fact, she just felt numb, eyes fixated intently on one dull spot on the metal plated floor. She told herself to stay calm. Keep collected. She was a sensible girl - she knew it was safer to do what her captors said as it increased her chances of survival. She expected to see that one same man she was forced to look at day upon day, whether it be to give her a slice of bread and water to keep her alive for a little bit longer or to answer questions about her or the detective they all assumed she was close to, but she was wrong.

The man with the pointed nose was not the person now standing before her. It was a girl; a girl she had been acquainted with maybe once or twice. She didn't know much about her, but she sure as hell knew her name. "I know you- You- You're-" She was too shocked to speak, unable to finish her sentences, her voice like jagged knives caught in her sore, burning throat. 

Her eyes froze open, staring at the girl with a deranged open-mouthed smile printed onto her porcelain face. "You remember me? I'm flattered!" She chuckled. She climbed up onto the arm of the chair where her captive was strapped to, perching on it dangerously. "You know, your precious detective doesn't remember you. I asked for one of the losers in this lame organisation to give him a call and asked him to hand himself over in return for your life. Of course we didn't give your name, that would spoil the surprise too quickly. So... We just told him it was someone precious to him! You two must be close, huh? That piggy-nosed geek saw you two chumming it up together."

The hostage blinked blankly before taking a breath. "Shuichi and I aren't-" _SLAP!_ She was cut off by the heavy-handed smacking of skin on the right side of her face. It happened as quickly as she had opened her mouth. Blood began to rush to her stinging cheek as she bit her tongue and inhaled through her teeth in an attempt to stay quiet.

"Shut _up!_ I wasn't finished talking. _Don't_ interrupt me again, because next time it won't be my fists." The impatient girl threatened as she climbed off of the arm and hopped back onto the floor with a light thud, the clonking sound of her feet meeting the ground, reverberating across the silver box that surrounded them as it rung maliciously in their ears. "Do you know where you are? Why you were brought here? _Who_ ordered for you to be brought here?" The girl said dauntingly. She spoke increasingly slowly as if to drill the questions into the captive's mind, her pace matching perfectly as she slowly stepped around the electric chair, circling the other girl like a devious predator hunting vulnerable prey. "You don't need to answer. You don't know any of these things. We're basically done with you now, since Shuichi doesn't seem to care about you. I don't blame him though, just look at you. You're pathetic. Since you're no use to us, it appears that we're gonna have to find another way to lure him in." She stopped dead in her tracks, hands on her hips as she began to mumble to herself. "That being said... I could always ask these stupid people I'm working with to help me manipulate their dear leader. Lure him out like bait, let Shuichi take it... And then he's mine. Yeah, I can play with this." Her innocent expression twisted into one of wretched animosity, an unexpectedly vindictive cackle tearing itself from her throat.

The other girl could only sit and stare in silence at the disturbing sight before her. What did this- this psycho want with Shuichi? Weren't they supposed to be friends? They _were_ friends, weren't they? Why did she sound so sinister? "I want to know what purpose I serve being here." She stated bleakly, deciding to ignore the display of insanity before her. 

The girl's head snapped back to face the hostage. "It's not like you're going anywhere any time soon, so I suppose I can answer all of those questions. I have time to kill so I guess it's your lucky day. You don't have anyone to tell so it's not going to be a problem for me at all." Snarled the sadistic girl with a nonchalant shrug. "Let's start with... Location! So you know the phantom thief, right? I mean of course you do, everyone does! We're right here in his evil lair! Or lame, boring, stale, spiritless underground sci-fi dungeon. Same thing. Oh, but don't get me wrong, he doesn't even know you or I am here - I joined forces with his organisation and it was my suggestion to bring you here. But sadly my plan backfired apparently because Shuichi isn't coming to save you any time soon."

She was dumbfounded. She thought that the girl in front of her was too kind-hearted - she was sure she had read her correctly. What motive could she possibly have for all of this? "But why? For what reason?"

The question hung heavy in the air, seeming to startle the certifiable girl standing in the middle the room. Her expression flickered to a completely blank one as she stared at the ground, only to pop back up a second later completely recovered and looking as emotionally stable as ever. "I already told you that you were only brought here as bait for Shuichi. But from the discerning look in your eyes I can tell that you already know that I have better reasoning than that. You're right! The real reason is... A secret, silly!" She chirped, a graceful beam gracing her beautiful features. "If I gave you a proper explanation _now_ it'd spoil my fun! It's too early for that!" 

"I see." The quiet hostage spat, a vague hint of hatred laced in her calm voice. 

The deviant smirked cheekily as she leaned her elbow on the other girl's shoulder. Her face fell as if feigning sympathy. "I don't mean to revisit previous topics _but..._ It wouldn't really matter if I told you. You wouldn't remember in the end anyway."

The girl tried to flinch her shoulder away from the female cooing tauntingly in her ear as if she were the Cheshire Cat. "What do you mean?" 

"What do I mean? That's a good question." She chuckled lightly as she shoved the other girl away and slipped back in front of her. "I'll let you think about that yourself. You're a smart girl. You're supposed to be _known_ for your intelligence so prove that to me. Come on, you can work it out!" With a mocking grin the girl cheerily walked towards the same noisy metal door she had entered through. "Before I leave... Do you have any last words?" 

"I do."

A short laugh. "Speak now or forever hold your peace."

She took a deep but silent breath in, letting it out through her nose. "I want to know why you're acting like this. I've never seen you like this before. Are you being forced to do this? If you are, let me go and I can help you."

The girl with her hand pressed against the cool metal stared in place silently for a moment. "No one has seen me like this before, not since- since nothing, just consider yourself special. And no, I'm doing this all of my own accord. I don't need help from someone as worthless as you, or _anyone_ for that matter." She opened the door, unhinged screeching assaulting the pair's ears. 

"Then why-"

" _Shut up!_ I..." She released an unsure, shaky breath as if her character was slipping, her defensive walls crumbling down. "It's none of your damn business, bitch." The door suddenly slammed shut as she hurried out and the pattering sound of frantic rampaging footsteps echoed down through the empty corridor. 

-

Shuichi stared blankly at the several sheets of lined paper scattered across the coffee table as he sat on his knees beside it, head planted against the cold wood. The afternoon sun peeked in through the window, the curtains half-drawn shut in turn casting large dark shadows across the entirety of the monotonous living room. In his right hand was a black ball-point pen which he was idly fiddling about with, twirling it skillfully around his fingertips as if it were a baton used in majorettes. He was undeniably stumped with this case. On the contrary, however, the majority of his attention was centred upon the writing utensil dancing around his fingers rather than solely focused on depicting what the calling card meant. 

Shuichi was tired of the phantom thief's games - the last two heists had been a huge thorn in his side, especially with the criminal's distracting advances, the kiss the smaller male planted on his head after he had hurt his leg which he had forced into the back of his mind in particular. For the past two heists he had wound up trapped or injured, not to mention his self esteem had plummeted drastically because of this one purple haired menace. It was humiliating. It was frustrating. He closed his eyes with an exhausted sigh and let his hand hang limp over his head, the pen dropping to the table and rolling across the surface noisily. If he messed this heist up too then his image would be damaged even more. Sure, he was appearing in newspaper articles more frequently for his work. And sure, he was becoming quite the celebrity. But is that what he truly wanted? He just yearned for his normal life back, without all of this extra baggage and danger. His safety had been threatened by this man- his _life_ had been threatened. It was only natural that the detective was completely done with the criminal's out-of-line antics. To Shuichi, confronting him the next time he saw him as well as putting his games to an end was his main focus. It was a goal he would strive for. He couldn't cower in fear anymore or let the thief push him around and toy with him as he pleased. No, Shuichi wasn't pathetic or as poignantly piteous as he was thought to be. He'd show everyone what he could do and who he really was.

Right _after_ he found the motivation to lift his head from the table and get up, of course.

Luckily for the detective, that motivation came when his phone began buzzing beside his head, the vibrating sounds pulsing through the wood uncomfortably in his ear. He lifted his head to only rest his chin on the table instead as he reached for the black smartphone. His finger felt for the power button, pressing it feebly and watching the screen light brighten up instantly. His eyes scanned the screen as he read the Powwow notification from Kaito, who had sent a message to their group chat. The chat participants consisted of himself, Kaito, Maki and Kaede, but over the past few weeks the chatroom had gradually become as inactive as ever. It saddened Shuichi, although the four of them occasionally hung out as a group whenever they could. But with Kaito and Maki's baby, along with Kaede locked away in her house practising her piano pieces and Shuichi working on this particularly aggravating case, it seemed it would be a long while until they all would spend quality time together once again. He remembered telling Kokichi about all of them, as well as saying that he'd try to arrange something so they could meet each other one day. It gave him an idea. Adding another person to the friendship group would be a pretty good thing, especially since Kokichi was a positive, energetic soul who, from what Shuichi had experienced, was always pleasant and fun to be around. Albeit, he had to respond to Kaito first before he could propose anything. He'd get to that at some point. He unlocked his phone and clicked on the notification which brought him straight to the group chat. 

**Sidekicks™**

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : hey guys!! maki roll and I are going to her first ultrasound scan  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : exciting right?!?!?! _16:27_

Shuichi smiled at his phone and typed an honest, genuine response. 

_SidekickSaihara_ : I'm so proud of you both. I hope everything goes well! _16:29_

__

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : thanks sidekick  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : we'll keep you updated, won't we maki roll ?? _16:30_

Shuichi hadn't really noticed until now, but said female had only been silently watching the chat as he and Kaito had been speaking. Maki never was much of a conversationalist, but today she was being especially quiet. Shuichi figured it must be related to her being nervous about the scan or something of the sort, but he couldn't be sure. Or perhaps he was just being too analytical and overthinking the situation. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable by asking when it could just be a simple coincidence so he pushed the ridiculous thought from his mind. 

_MakiRoll©™DontYouDareChangeYourScreenName has renamed MakiRoll©™DontYouDareChangeYourScreenName to 'Maki'_

_Maki_ : Yes. _16:36_

The detective stared at his screen for a minute, a wistful but barely visible smile poking at his lips. Though he truly was happy for his best friends, he envied what they had too. They were no doubt in love, it was no secret - anyone could tell. They shared something that Shuichi had never felt before and now he was beginning to feel even more isolated. What felt even stranger to him was how long it took Maki to respond when he could only assume that the duo were together. Maki was online and reading the chat the entire time, so she couldn't have been logging on. It was just absurd to the detective how long it took to type a three letter word. Maki most likely had a lot on her mind. Maybe he was just overthinking. 

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : see? we've got you covered  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : sooo  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : what are your plans for the rest of today sidekick? _16:38_

Shuichi lifted himself from the table and opened his camera, snapping a quick, effortless photo of himself, holding up a peace sign with his right hand. The detective angled the camera to catch a glimpse of all the paper on the coffee table in the picture to emphasise his stress and struggle. Scrunching his face up at the sight of his dishevelled appearance, he hit send. 

_SidekickSaihara sent (1) image(s). Click to open._

_SidekickSaihara_ : Work. _16:42_

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : looks like you've got your hands full huh  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : what happened to your finger? you hurt yourself? _16:44_

_SidekickSaihara_ : It's just a paper cut, don't worry. _16:44_

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : makes sense considering you've got all that paper in front of you  
_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : remember to be careful buddy _16:45_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Actually the culprit wasn't the paper. I tried to pick up a book this morning and my finger slipped across the edge. _16:46_

Then it hit the detective. How could he have been such an idiot when the answer was right in front of him? Quite literally. 

_LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : we've got to go now _LuminaryoftheSTARS_ : see ya shuichi _16:49_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Actually, I need to go too. Thanks to you, I think I may have come to an important realisation. I finally have an idea.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : Bye Kaito. Bye Maki. Good luck to both of you. _16:50_

Shuichi threw his phone gently onto the velvet couch behind him as his brain began whirring, piecing the perplexing puzzle together bit by bit. He'd ask about Kokichi later on, now he finally had a lead. The _book_ gave him a paper cut. _Books_ have lots of pages. Pages are made from _paper_ and therefore have the ability to _cut_ you; _paper cuts galore!_ How could he have been so blind to realise something so simple? All he had to do now was make the link between books and blades. He picked up a blank sheet of paper and retrieved the pen from across the small table, sliding both items over towards him. In the middle of the paper he wrote the words presented on the calling card neatly, his handwriting rounded and joined, almost the image of perfection as the diffident detective desperately desired to be. From the sentence containing 'paper cuts galore' he drew a line to the side and wrote 'books'. This was the beginning of his mindmap - the tool he would use to assist him in solving this case! Though this would only be the scenario if he could think hard enough, naturally. Shuichi knew this was important. It was vital for catching the phantom thief - for catching DICE - so he cleared his overwrought mind and focused. 

Concentrating diligently, another line was drawn from 'books' beneath it. _If the heist has something to do with books,_ Shuichi thought, tapping the back of his pen on the table in a syncopated, off-beat rhythm, _then what could the location be? A sale?_   Another line was added, accompanied with a tidy scribble of his brainstorm. _A sale would be... Another line. At a bookshop? But wouldn't that be too easy for the thief? Would a bookshop be a busy enough place for DICE to strike?_ He considered crossing out his idea, but left it just in case it could be useful. Instead, he opted for putting a large question mark beside the words. _Instead of just one book... What if it was multiple books that are involved? Like... Like a press conference discussing a new book!_ A smile blessed his features as he began to jot again. He could be assuming something completely wrong, he knew that from the past heists - everything was an assumption that had turned out to be correct. The thief didn't like to give out impossible hints which were too challenging to solve. This only urged to detective to go with his gut as he swallowed nervously. 

The next thing he had to think of is what the thief was after. He couldn't possibly be after a book, they weren't immensely expensive or valuable in the slightest, and books didn't fit in with the list of items which had been stolen before. Pricey jewellery, a robot prototype, an amethyst and a camera - what DICE was after had to be something of the sort. Shuichi looked at the middle of the paper again and carefully reread the lines. _Something that fits in..._ He gasped at the realisation, an obvious realisation he had considered earlier on that day. 'Though, they aren't just any blades I seek'... _Special blades!_ Roller blades in this situation seemed ridiculous, so he crossed that off his metaphorical list of ideas, leaving only scissors. Shuichi figured that the scissors would be required to cut something. Like... Maybe a ribbon for example? So perhaps the thief was planning to purlin a pair of scissors. That settled it. The detective was unable to conclude anything further, stumped once again. 

He put the pen down once again and reached behind him for his phone which he had tossed aside. If he couldn't figure this all out himself, he was sure he could count on his friends to lend him an extra helping hand. He unlocked his phone and took a picture of the paper he had been brainstorming on, then sent the picture to the group chat hoping that at least one of the other three were available to talk. Almost instantly, Kaede's screen name popped up on the bottom of the screen underneath his message and Shuichi released a sigh of relief. Her timing was extremely convenient, but he was thankful for this coincidence. 

**Sidekicks™**

_SidekickSaihara sent (1) image(s). Click to open._

_KeyboardCat_ : One minute, I'm reading the chat ♡  
_KeyboardCat_ : Also I can't open images because my WiFi isn't working and I'm almost out of data, sorry! I'll be back in a second. _17:23_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Okay, no problem. I just needed a bit of help I guess. _17:24_

_KeyboardCat_ : I'm back! So I'm assuming that's for the next heist right? _17:33_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Yes.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : I've got some ideas but I don't really know where I can take this next. _17:34_

_KeyboardCat_ : Run me through what you have so far and I'll see what I can suggest. :) _17:35_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Okay. So I thought maybe 'paper cuts galore' was referring to books considering they've got lots of pages which can cause paper cuts if you're not careful.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : With this information I tried to narrow down where the location would be. At first I thought maybe a sale at a bookshop, but then I decided that couldn't be it due to the thief's show-off nature. It wouldn't be busy enough, and books aren't quite valuable.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : That's when I thought of a press conference. It's a little far fetched, but if the book referred to in the hint was a brand new one from a popular series, then wouldn't a ton of people show up? It'd be a busy event, no doubt. _17:41_

_KeyboardCat_ : Oh my God there's a press conference tomorrow for Toko Fukawa's new romance novel! _17:44_

_SidekickSaihara_ : That famous author who became a popular writer as a teenager? You like her books? Not that that's a bad thing - I'm sure they're very good! _17:44_

_KeyboardCat_ : Yep! The writing prodigy! She's the one who created the best book series I have ever read!  
_KeyboardCat_ : I'm so excited, Shuichi! I'm sure this is the last book that there'll be in this series but it'll conclude everything that's happened in all the other parts up to now!  
_KeyboardCat_ : You really should check them out when you find the time. The story follows Byaku Toga; a rich, dreamy heir who denies and rejects the love of a fair young maiden named Foko Tuka who tries her best to win his heart. It's such a heartfelt story and the character development between them is so amazing and beautifully written. _17:49_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Why do those names sound so familiar? _17:49_

_KeyboardCat_ : No idea, but Toko insists that her story and the characters are purely from her imagination and that any resemblances to real life are completely coincidental. _17:50_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Right.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : I may read them at some point. How many books are there in the series? _17:50_

_KeyboardCat_ : So far there's 34 but tomorrow there'll be 35! It's all worth the read I promise! _17:51_

_SidekickSaihara_ : I see... Are you going to the press conference tomorrow? _17:51_

_KeyboardCat_ : Yeah! The books with limited edition covers are being sold tomorrow evening at the event and ONLY tomorrow so I HAVE to be there! _17:52_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Do you mind if I come with you? I'm not sure if that's where the thief has in mind, but it's worth a shot. _17:53_

_KeyboardCat_ : No, I'm pretty sure he's going to be there. All the evidence you've provided me points straight up towards it.  
_KeyboardCat_ : Tomorrow is Friday which technically counts as the end of the week and the beginning of the weekend. Just like the thief said. That's the ultimate piece of evidence that it has to be tomorrow at the press conference.  
_KeyboardCat_ : But of course you can come with me! Anything for the best detective in the world!!! _17:56_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Thank you, Kaede.  
_SidekickSaihara_ : I'll see you tomorrow. I'll have to contact my uncle to see if he can get through to Kyoko and ask if she can help with the investigation. _17:57_

_KeyboardCat_ : While you do that, I'll contact Toko and warn her about the thief. I can't let you do all the work after all. ;) _17:58_

_SidekickSaihara_ : Thanks again. Goodbye! _17:58_

Shuichi logged off of Powwow once more and set his phone down gently. He gathered all his paper up into a neat pile in the centre of his table and with newfound determination, he stood up ready to get to work. 

That thief wasn't going to catch himself. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh dear I am so sorry this took almost 3 weeks to write  
> I got stuck writing because writer's block and I are the best of friends, so I edited old parts (I plan on rewriting a few paragraphs of each in the future, as well as add in things of the original plan that I missed)  
> I know this part is pretty much a mess but I really tried to get this part out as quickly as I could. Anywayssss if Shuichi and Kaede are correct the next chapter will be a long awaited heist! Or will they be wrong, dreadfully wrong
> 
> As always, please feel free to theorise in the comments


	12. A Stolen Spotlight

The soft murmur of the vehicle moving rumbled underneath her as the bus approached yet another stop. Kaede sat, eyes closed, with her head resting pressed against the warm glass. The afternoon sun glared through the window at her as her blonde hair attempted to block the piercing light from her view. Today was the day she would finally be able to impress Shuichi. She was going to help her best friend with the case and Shuichi would appreciate her until the end of time. She was on her way to said detective's apartment building which was only a little while away from her own house. To save the boy the effort of travelling to her, she decided to meet him at his own place: another kind deed for the boy who deserved the world. 

On her lap was her phone where she had been talking to Shuichi about her whereabouts and her travel and transport plans previously that day. When her phone began to vibrate her head perked up and a sweet smile began to form. Her beam only grew brighter as she anticipated reading the message Shuichi sent her. So, with a brilliant grin and wide pink eyes, she unlocked her phone to see a message from... 'Unsaved number'? _Again?_ She frowned. Her happy expression melted from her face as she whispered out an annoyed groan. She debated whether she should read the message or not for a moment, but decided she'd be a lot less anxious and paranoid if she knew what they wanted with her this time.

She opened the text and upon mumbling the words displayed before her widened eyes, she could've sworn that she felt her heart stop. "Hello, Kaede. We know where you're going tonight. We have eyes everywhere - we'll be watching your every move. Be careful." Just what had she gotten herself tangled up into? 

The blonde girl didn't reply to the message. Instead, like many times before, she deleted it. She would not reply - she never had in the past and she wouldn't start now. Interactions like this were pointless. Interacting with Shuichi on the other hand? That wasn't pointless at all. Kaede exited the chat and opened Powwow before tapping on Shuichi's private messages with her. She decided to update him on her whereabouts to distract herself. 

**♡BestFriend♡**

_Me_ : I should be over in a little bit!! Maybe 10ish minutes _13:26_

 _♡BestFriend♡_ : Ah, thanks. Tell me when you're outside.  
_♡BestFriend♡_ : What's the plan for the day? You're the one who knows where we're going. _13:27_

 _Me_ : Soooo when I get there we're gonna walk down to the train station and take the train right to the place  
_Me_ : Outside the venue there's gonna be a super long queue because people all want the books with limited edition covers, we're allowed to jump it and go straight in  
_Me_ : Then we'll find Toko and keep an eye on her until the event is over and ensure she and whatever the thief wants is safe!! _13:30_

 _♡BestFriend♡_ : Sounds good. I'll be waiting for you in the lobby. _13:30_

 _Me_ : I can't come in? _13:31_

Kaede screwed her face up at her rose gold phone in confusion. Why wasn't Shuichi inviting her in for a minute? He always let her come in. What could he be hiding? He didn't have a secret girlfriend, did he? Not that she would care. Her only concern would be if whoever she was would ever try to hurt her best friend. Kaede never intended to be intrusive. In fact, she would give Shuichi all the space in the world if he needed it, and she would never in a million years pressure him to say or do anything he didn't want to. However, Shuichi never waited in the lobby. He didn't like being there - he'd always claimed it made him uncomfortable standing alone in there. The pink eyed girl couldn't help but worry. 

_♡BestFriend♡_ : Not today. Maybe another time. It's nothing personal, I promise. I just have work stuff everywhere and my apartment currently isn't fit for visitors. _13:32_

 _Oh._ That made sense, she thought. It was just work, nothing to be concerned about. Shuichi was alright. That was good. Really, really good. Kaede shrugged off the matter and set on replying quickly. The bus was pulling over to her stop so she urged herself to hurry.

 _Me_ : I'm almost there  
_Me_ : Meet me outside :) _13:34_

Hopping off of the bus, Kaede tucked her phone into the waistband of her skirt. She was undeniably happy that she was able to spend the whole day with her best friend, the whole night too! It reminded the blonde girl of when she was younger. She and Shuichi would spend every minute possible in each other's company, something she dearly missed. But now this was an opportunity for her to reminisce on the brighter parts of her stolen childhood - to make up for all those years lost in the past. To help Shuichi so he would like her more. And of course he would like her more! Kaede would save the day! She would save him. She would protect him. Because she loved him. But only as a friend! That's what friends are for, obviously. Friends are supposed to look out for each other, so being the kind-hearted, gentle person she was, that's just what she would do. 

Some people may have perceived her generosity as a crush, but Kaede knew this couldn't be the case, could it? She'd had feelings for her best friend in the past but she had accepted that they were better off as friends and that someone as brilliant as him would never fall for something like _her_. And she was alright that way. It didn't bother her at all! At most, she just felt a little bit stupid for thinking a relationship would work between them. But... Something deep inside of her wanted to prove herself wrong. The whole topic made her feel a colourful rainbow of emotion that she didn't like. It _hurt_ her. Howbeit, she had to live with it. It was all for Shuichi in the end. Everything she ever did was just for her best friend. 

Feeling immensely grateful for her friendship with the apprentice detective, her walk turned into a speedy skip as she hummed sweetly to herself the beautiful tunes they had played together on her piano. A sweet melody. A sweet friendship. Yes, the light breeze combing through her silky hair as she progressed towards her destination, the dazzling afternoon sun hotter than her burning desire for the acknowledgement she dreamed of, she and the brilliant boy who had been her top priority for her whole life, everything was perfect as it was. She wouldn't change it for the world.

-

Shuichi had left the lobby and begun walking to meet Kaede perhaps five minutes ago. He didn't think it was fair for the other of the two to go the extra mile of picking him up from his building and then walking all the way back to town to the train station. Down the street on the other side of the road he could see a blur of pink and blonde. Immediately he knew it was his childhood friend Kaede. It seemed she had seen him too as she had started running in his direction.

"Hey Kaede!" Shuichi called, quickening his pace in an attempt to somewhat meet hers but was still walking nonetheless. If he ran he was sure his hat would fly off, and he wanted to save all of his energy for chasing the thief. 

Kaede began running faster. "Shuichi? Hi!" By the time the two finally met, Kaede was out of breath, doubled over trying to refill her lungs as if they were deflated balloons. "I thought... I told you... To wait outside your building."

Shuichi smiled. "I wanted to do you a favour and save you the extra walking distance. We should get going to the station now." He signalled for her to follow him and began to walk towards town once again. 

Kaede beamed brightly at her best friend's words as he turned his back to her. He was being considerate? And caring? And kind? _For her?_ He was looking out for her! She had the best best friend in the world. "Okay! Let's go!" Kaede chirped as she hurried to catch up with the detective and walked happily beside him. "What do you think will happen tonight?" 

"Hm?" Shuichi seemed distracted, biting his lip and staring at the ground. His head popped back up to face forwards immediately. 

"I said: what do you think will happen tonight?" Kaede peered around at Shuichi's face, straight away noticing that the navy haired boy rarely acted like this unless something was on his mind. "Are you okay, Shuichi? You can talk to me about anything, you know." 

He nodded. He couldn't tell her - it would make her panic and he could never do that to her. This heist would be an important one for him; it was the night where Shuichi would confront the thief for the paranoia he was experiencing. He would make the thief regret sending him those threats for sure. "I'm good. Don't worry. I'm just thinking about tonight."

"So what do you think?" She asked.

 _Oh._ Now he had to think of something on the spot. "I... I um... I was just thinking of ways I could catch the thief."

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

 _Yikes._ "Well... If I'm going to chase him I'm gonna have to corner him somewhere. B-But that's kind of always the plan. I'll just have to see what he does first. I don't know..."

Kaede grabbed hold of Shuichi's wrist gently. "Hey, don't doubt yourself. I know you can do it! Plus, we're sure to catch the thief tonight because we're both gonna be working hard together!" She let go of Shuichi as she gasped excitedly. "Do you think Toko will give me her new book for free for helping her? Oh my gosh that would be so cool!"

The detective chuckled lightly to himself, rolling his eyes dismissively. "Okay, Kaede. Don't get your hopes up. I'll buy it for you as thanks for this."

"Really? Thank you so much!" She giggled joyfully as they approached the station. She really did have the best friend in the universe.

-

The couple were sitting in their living room in an awkward silence. Both were on either side of their three-seater sofa, though the nursery teacher faced away from the trainee astronaut who had desperately been trying to reason with her.

"Maki, _PLEASE_ talk to me. I'm sorry, okay? I really am sorry, but we _are_ still his friend." Kaito elucidated, resting his hand on top of hers which had been sitting on her lap.

She snatched her hand away almost instantly and moved herself even closer to the arm of the sofa, if that was even possible. "No, Kaito. It's better to back off. You _know_ that we'll get hurt if we don't. I need to protect both you and the baby. Friendship can wait. We have more important things to think about, so please stop putting us in danger. I'm not going to let you talk to him anymore." She turned to face him, a serious expression on her face proving she was _not_ joking. None of this was a joke.

Kaito scooted closer. "We're allowed small interactions every once in a while so it doesn't look suspicious - it's only natural that we would tell Shuichi and Kaede about that. They're our friends and you need all the support you can get right now!"

"I don't care, Kaito! No harm will come to anyone if we just shut up and stay away. I knew you were an airhead but I didn't think you were this stupid." She leaned in closer to him, threateningly. "Our lives are at risk. Get perspective." Maki spoke slowly, letting every syllable sink in.

 _Silence._ The two sat together for a minute, staring at each other as if analysing the other. Kaito suddenly stood up and paced towards the door. "I'm going upstairs." He stood in place in the doorway for a second waiting to see if Maki would reply, or follow him or even make some form of noise. She didn't. Sighing through his nose, he began to climb the stairs.

"Kaito, wait!" She chased him, stopping in the doorway where he once stood a moment ago. Kaito, only halfway up the stairs, froze dead in his tracks. "Please... Please listen to me."

He turned around and faced her, a doleful look on his face. "What?"

"I-I'm-- Kaito I'm sorry! I love you, Kaito. I just want to keep you safe and with everything else going on and work I'm really stressed out. I'm just so worried, okay? I don't want you to get hurt. I don't want anyone to get hurt!" She yelled softly, pouring all of her heart and soul into her apology. She couldn't bare to see his face whilst the heart-felt words flooded from her lips. Tears began to well up daring to spill out.

Maki hadn't noticed, but throughout her monologue Kaito had made his way back down the stairs and was now standing before her, resting his hand gently on her upper arm. "I want to protect you too, Maki, but our best friend matters as well. So does K- We need to find a way to protect him _and her_ without those nasty criminals finding out."

Maki lifted her head to meet Kaito's gaze. She thought hard about her options and opened her mouth as if to speak before closing it again. She let out a heavy sigh and nodded. "Alright. I'll help you protect them, but you'd better be one hundred percent sure that you want to do this. We're going to do it together even if means we're treading on thin ice. I don't like quitting halfway. Got it?" 

"Thank you, Maki. I love you." Kaito pulled her into a warm embrace, wrapping his arms carefully around her. He gently pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead before releasing her from his hold and walking back up the stairs where he had intended to go before.

-

Saying the queue was long was the understatement of the year. As Kaede and Shuichi approached the venue, they eyed the lengthy line which lead around the block, growing longer every few minutes as someone else arrived.

"Um Kaede? Th-This is the place?" Shuichi asked, a glint in his eye begging that the press conference would be held at the building next door.

"Yep! Why? What's wrong?" Kaede responded.

"N-Nothing! It's just... There's a lot of people. Are they all going to be in there?" He questioned, pulling his cap forwards to mask his lack of confidence.

Kaede stopped walking. "Oh, I get it now. You're not a fan of crowds, are you? That's okay," She checked the time on her phone, "It's almost quarter to four. People aren't allowed in until about half past five or six'o'clock. And that line is for the books. I doubt many of those will be in the room the press conference will be held in."

"Oh. Okay. Can we go in already please? Let's get this over and done with as soon as we can." The shy detective asked, forcing a courageous smile.

"Sure." She lead him towards the entrance, passing by people who whined and moaned angrily at them for 'jumping the queue' (which they were, but for a very good reason, Shuichi thought).

They soon reached the front of the queue and Shuichi could've sworn that he hadn't pulled his cap over his eyes to avoid the piercing gaze of others this much in perhaps years. Once they were there, they were stopped by a rather burly looking security guard with jet black hair and brown eyes. "And where do you think _you're_ going? Join the back of the line and wait like everybody else."

Shuichi looked up at Kaede pulling an unsure expression which screamed 'please tell me you have a plan', to which she replied with a quick nod, followed by a proud look of her own saying 'you bet I do' in the most smug way possible. "Actually, whilst joining the queue sounds like a very pleasant idea," She plucked her phone from the waistband of her warm purple skirt and proceeded to remove the rose gold phone case littered with white piano scores. From the inside of the phone case she pulled out two small slips of paper which had been folded in half, "We're on a tight schedule and need to get inside _now._ "

She handed them to the security guard who inspected them thoroughly, as if they were a puzzle looking to be solved. "I'm sorry, come on in. Have a good day." He passed the slips of paper back and nodded kindly as he stepped out of their way.

Shuichi gasped at her as soon as they had passed the security guard and were now inside the building they needed to be in. "H-How did you _do_ that? What was on the paper?" The words streamed from his mouth in amazement like it was the most stunning thing he had ever witnessed.

The blonde girl giggled. "Well, I couldn't find any contact for Toko online so I visited here last night to see if I could speak with anyone who was in charge of the place. So, it turns out Toko was spending the night here to avoid getting mobbed by fans as she entered. I managed to speak with her and she gave me those so we could get in when we needed to. Y'know... She really is a lot more antisocial than you'd ever expect!" Kaede beamed as she put the small slips of paper back into her phone case for safe keeping.

Shuichi was at a loss for words, his mouth opening and closing without releasing any noise until he managed to utter a 'wow'. "I'm actually... Really impressed with you, Kaede. You thought a lot farther ahead of this than me. Maybe you should be the detective instead." He looked away to hide his face. He didn't want his childhood friend seeing the expression he had pulled after spewing out such cheesy things. It sounded almost romantic, too.

Kaede thanked the heavens above that Shuichi had faced away from her as it made it a thousand times easier to hide the fact that her cheeks were definitely dusted with a cherry red tint, the corners of her mouth twisted up into a strange smile as if she were suppressing a squeal or a scream or _something._ "Aw, thanks, but it's really nothing. I just wanted to help, that's all."

Still looking anywhere but Kaede, Shuichi made a suggestion. "Maybe we should start looking around and try to find Toko."

"Good idea! Let's go!" The optimistic pianist cried as she began to walk speedily ahead, eager to explore. 

It had been a while since the pair had begun searching the establishment and the duo had discovered that the building had only one storey, a pleasant change to the complicated structures in all the others buildings the heists were previously located in. Shuichi was relieved that no chase would take place where he was required to run up a flight of stairs. The two had also discovered that the building looped in almost a circle; there was a big room with a stage, a long table on top with a microphone resting on the surface and a chair tucked neatly underneath it. Cameras were being set up in front of the stage, as well as several rows of seats close together. Shuichi figured that this room would be where the press conference would be held, so he decided that keeping an eye on it would be a wise idea. On the other side of the stage was a single door rather than a double door (which Shuichi and Kaede had peeked into the room through) and above it was a green fire exit sign. They later learned that the building looped around when they continued down the corridor, attempting to open many locked doors on the way but failing and turning at every corner until they approached the fire exit door. They, curious and confused, opened it and inside was the same room with the stage. An important observation. Whilst the door was said to be a 'fire exit', the real fire exit was down the corridor next to the toilets. 

They were back near where they started, and Kaede was excitedly peering through the door on the opposite side of the corridor to the room with the stage. "Shuichi!" She exclaimed. "Look! It's the room with the books! Those sweet, _sweet_ limited edition books..." Kaede was almost drooling as she leaned against the door dramatically.

"Ah, really? That's nice. Can you see Toko in there, by any chance?" The detective asked, standing beside her quite awkwardly.

"Mmm... Nope. She's not in here either. But we have to guard this room - I'm going to protect these books with my life!" She shut the door carefully so there wasn't a loud bang when the heavy door closed, before resting with her back against the shiny wood.

"You'll be relieved to hear that the thief isn't after the books, Kaede." The detective corrected her assumption, though now something definitely wasn't adding up. He didn't voice his concern, however. There was sure to be an explanation for it, a misunderstanding.

"Then what could the thief possibly be after?" Kaede tilted her head to the side, a little doubtful of Shuichi's statement.

"He wants a blade. Or, more specifically, a pair of blades like scissors. It said it directly in the hint, after all." Shuichi remembered his breakthrough from the day before, something he was truly proud of (despite the hours of procrastination). He was sure he would have never figured any of the hint out if he wasn't so clumsy. Having such a solid resolve like this made him smile to himself.

"Oh, really? Sorry. But at least the precious books won't be harmed!" Kaede sang joyously, seemingly too focused on the wellbeing of the books to care about what the thief really wanted.

"Wh-Who's there?" A shaky female voice called from down the corridor, the woman's anxious voice being carried down the hallway as it echoed. Shuichi and Kaede's heads immediately snapped the face where the voice had originated from where a set of grey eyes covered by a pair of large wire-rimmed glasses met theirs as the owner crept out from around the corner. Her long, straggly purple hair hung behind her and several thin hair clips held her equally long fringe back. "O-Oh it's you a-again."

Kaede waved cheerfully to the woman now approaching them. She had a small mole on the left side of her chin and pale skin which at closer inspection appeared somewhat dirty. Most of her skin was covered by the dark, tattered clothing she wore; a purple sailor uniform, the red scarf dangling on her chest torn at the sides accompanied by a lengthy skirt with large rips streaking along it vertically, revealing one thigh with what appeared to be tally marks carved in. Underneath her skirt she wore night black thigh-highs and on her feet purple mary jane-style heels. "Hi Toko! We've been looking for you."

The nervous author stalked towards them carefully like a timid animal. "S-So you d-did come back, um... Kade?" Toko said as she turned to the boy. "A-And this i-is the detective?" 

Shuichi nodded, but wasn't given a chance to speak as the blonde pianist piped up before he could. "Actually, my name is _Kaede,_ not Kade. And yep, this is _the_ Shuichi Saihara himself."

Toko nodded a little at what Kaede said, making it clear that she wasn't very interested in whatever just came out of her mouth and she would continue mispronouncing her name. She looked directly at the dark haired apprentice detective who had been silently staring at her. "What are _you_ l-looking at, e-emo? Am I so d-disgusting you want me out of y-your sight?"

Shuichi jumped a little at the sudden accusation and raised his hands defensively. "N-No! That's really not it... I was just, ah, wondering what those marks on your thigh were."

"They're just tallies of how many of m-my books w-were international b-bestsellers last year. Wh-Why? Do you en-enjoy looking at girls' th-thighs? I thought you were here t-to catch a thief." She spat, scowling fiercely at him.

"Okay, Toko. There's no need for that. Can we please just focus on the case?" Kaede suggested as she stepped in before Shuichi's confidence took too much of a blow.

Toko's snarl only grew as she sneered. "D-Don't speak to me so casually like I'm one of your friends or something, _Kade._ J-Just do your job and g-get out."

Kaede's cheeks puffed up angrily, but Shuichi immediately stopped her from retaliating by changing the topic. "H-Hey! So... The thief appears to be after a special pair of scissors. Do you know of any around here?" Kaede visibly relaxed, to Shuichi's relief. He didn't want to risk being thrown out, especially after Kaede had put in so much effort to get him here. 

The writer furrowed her brows. "S-Scissors? There i-is _one_ pair I have. I d-don't have any other pairs. The only scissors I have is th-the giant g-gold scissors I'm going to use to c-cut the ribbon when unveiling the limited edition books."

"Only _those_ scissors? Are you sure they're the only ones there are?" Kaede chided, leaning forwards a little. Shuichi wondered what she was trying to do by making Toko repeat herself and tapped her ankle with his shoe lightly. Instantaneously Kaede stepped back with one foot and an apologetic smile found its way to her lips. "I'm not saying you're a liar, don't worry. I was just making sure that we've got the right idea here. Sorry."

"Hmph. Wh-What would I lie for?" She folded her arms irritatedly. "I'll show you the scissors i-if it really m-matters that much to you." Toko ushered Kaede away from the doors she was leaning on and opened one, disappearing into the room. 

Kaede rushed to enter, excited to be able to be so close to so many of the books she adored, followed by a much calmer Shuichi who rolled his eyes and smiled at her. Upon entry, Shuichi saw Toko holding up a pair of large golden scissors with one hand, and in her other hand was one of her books. "Ah, is that it?" He approached the two and stood beside a smiley Kaede who wasn't paying attention as she was occupied with scrutinising the room, the table piled up with books with shiny silver covers in particular. Her pink eyes were wide in awe like a magpie as they darted across the shimmering mountain of sparkles. 

"O-Obviously, otherwise I wouldn't b-be showing it to y-you, would I?" She held them out to the detective who quickly took them off of her. 

Shuichi inspected the slightly heavy weapon in his hands, turning it over and observing every detail. "I don't see anything special about these..."

The scissors were snatched violently from his hands and pulled to the writer's chest defensively. "N-Not special? This here is r-real gold! I paid a lot of money f-f-for them just for this event!" 

He tilted his head to the side. "Just for this event?" 

"Y-Yeah... I was gonna auction them o-off afterwards anyway." The author tucked the scissors into the top of her skirt. "Why? Is there something wrong? I j-just need the money..."

"Did you tell anyone that you were going to buy the scissors?" He asked, something really not feeling right. 

Toko very subtly began to lose her composure, eyes looking to the side nervously. Shuichi immediately caught sight of her microscopic movements, growing suspicious of her behaviour. "N-No... I only told the p-p-people I got them from that I wanted them. A-And I know you're going to ask wh-when I got them so I'll save you the e-effort. I bought them l-last week."

"But then..." Shuichi was sure that something definitely wasn't right. There was a sinking, pit feeling bubbling in his stomach and uncertainty clawed its way into his throat. If Toko hadn't said anything about the scissors, how did DICE know about them? And if she was auctioning them off afterwards, there wouldn't be any need for a heist to swipe them. Was his previous thinking correct or was Toko being dishonest? "I don't think these are what the thief is after."

Kaede quickly turned from the books to face Shuichi. "No, Shuichi. This _has_ to be what the thief wants. They're made from real gold; they could make a fortune out of selling them, especially since they belonged to _the_ Toko Fukawa herself! Plus there's no other scissors here. Toko already said so."

"Yes, but even so--"

"L-Listen to Kade, you dumbass d-detective. Jeez, use your brain! You're s-seriously useless... More useless than... Th-Than a salmon that has a-already laid its eggs!" The author's sudden uproar caused her to drop the book she was holding and it crashed to the floor with a thud.

Kaede picked the book up for her and carefully handed it back to her idol who tutted to herself at the damage caused; the book had opened before hitting the ground and now some pages had been folded slightly. " _Kaede,_ Toko, my name is Kaede. And thank you." The pianist reached out for Shuichi's arm, holding it gently. "We've got to trust her, okay Shuichi? I really don't doubt your detective skills for a minute, but we have to believe that Toko is telling the truth. Why would she want something of hers stolen? Just drop it, alright?"

She spoke so soothingly, so calmly, that Shuichi simply sighed and gave her a small nod, but it took him a moment to find his voice. "Maybe I am looking too deep into this. I'm probably just stressed out from dealing with the phantom thief, I'm sorry. You're right. Let's focus on protecting the scissors." He forced a smile as Kaede let go of his arm, the gentle warmth of her hand somehow burning into his skin through his grey pinstriped jacket.

Kaede turned her head to face Toko who was trying to undo the damage caused when she dropped her book. "Maybe we should hide the scissors underneath the table where the press conference is being held for now. There's a lot of people in there setting up so they'd surely see anyone sneaking in. Plus, it reduces the risk of you getting attacked for them, Toko." She suggested placing her hands on her hips, proud of the well thought out ideas she had strung together.

"I don't s-see why not... A-Alright, let's go." Toko swiftly left the room and the duo rushed after her, not wanting to be left in the large room, though Kaede would be more than happy to have been with all the books. 

They crossed the hall where the door to the room they needed to enter was and Toko opened the door, letting Kaede and Shuichi in before her. She walked up onto the stage and pulled the metal chair back before placing the scissors onto them and tucking the seat back in. Afterwards, she placed the book she had on the table for later on. She told all of the staff occupying the room to not let anybody in unless she had given them permission with proof and they all agreed to keep an eye out. Shuichi and Kaede were now standing beside the stage and had a very clear view of the room, opposed to peering in through a slightly opened door. The wooden stage wasn't very tall, with only two steps leading up onto it on each side. In front of the stage were six rows of seats positioned quite closely together upon the laminate floor. Behind them three cameras were being set up carefully and tested by a couple of staff members. At the top of the white wall behind the chairs and cameras were two narrow, horizontal windows which were opened a crack to let the outside air into the stuffy, hot room. Shuichi wondered if the thief would be able to fit through one of them, but he would only be able to fit probably just a single arm through the gap at once. Ruling that idea off of his mental list, he walked over to the fire exit on the other side of the room and shut it properly. He and Kaede had been able to open it earlier to peek into the room, so the thief could easily sneak in that way. The only way the thief could enter was through the main doors, but the staff would be in the room the whole time so it would be impossible for anyone to sneak in.

 _Poor, poor thief,_ Shuichi thought smugly, _guess you're going to jail empty handed tonight._ He made his way back over to the girls who appeared to be deep in conversation about books. He interrupted them, nonetheless. "I think this room is secure now. There's no way the thief can get in here without being caught."

Toko looked up from Kaede and adjusted her wire-rimmed glasses. "G-Good. Then you're able to l-l-leave, right?"

"Uh... Not exactly? We have to stay and catch-" His words were drowned out by his friend stepping in defensively.

"'Good'? Just _'good'_? What about a 'thank you'? That would be very much appreciated after how much effort we've- no, _Shuichi_ has put into trying to help you." The detective couldn't help but smile at her protectiveness, though he did think they would be better off not arguing with Toko who seemed to lack a lot of social skills. 

Toko scoffed. "What? You want me to p-p-praise you? You want me t-to thank you? Well that's just too bad. I've never praised or thanked anyone in m-my whole life."

Shuichi shot Kaede a look a lot like earlier on outside, except this time it read 'please just leave it'. Kaede only nodded, her head barely moving, however she didn't really want to leave it at all. "As I was saying before, we can't leave right now. Yes, the thief won't be able to enter this room but he could still be around the building somewhere waiting for everyone to leave and, as Kaede said before, attack you." Shuichi explained.

"F-Fine!" She grumbled as she crossed her arms frustratedly. "But just don't get in my w-way." 

Kaede beamed, friendly as ever, and questioned the author. "Toko, when does everybody start coming in for the press conference? And what time does the book sales start?"

"The press c-conference should take place from ap-pproxomately quarter past six to eight. The sales s-start at ten past e-eight and finishes whenever all the books are g-gone - so maybe half past ten." She glanced up at the digital clock on the wall above the door. "You have ten minutes."

"Thank you, Toko. You've been a big help." He smiled before swiftly leaving the room to do one final rundown of the entire building and return before people began entering. 

He tried opening the door holding the books but it wouldn't budge. It seemed to have been locked, which made sense since anyone could steal books whilst everyone was focused on Toko. If it was locked, there's no way the thief could be in there. Good. He checked every single door on the way, none opened. He approached the toilets and snorted to himself. The thought of his enemy hiding in a dirty toilet cubicle brought a mocking smile to his lips. He didn't even bother checking them; if he wanted to hide in such an unsanitary place, he could. Shuichi definitely wasn't going to stop the boy. Vermin like him should feel at home in there. He continued walking until he returned back to the main room's fire exit door and knocked on it until Kaede opened it for him.

"Find anything?" Her voice was a whisper as she shut the door again, making sure it was properly closed.

"Nothing, but the only place he could be hiding would be the toilets. If there are people standing by both doors there's no way he could get in. I think we're good." He explicated with a proud grin. Although, he still wasn't sure about all of this. Did the thief really want the gold scissors? It was too late now to come up with any more ideas, but the empty feeling in his stomach only grew with every passing second.

The conference had started off well with nothing suspicious occurring and the duo had been standing beside the stage behind security to keep sight of Toko and the scissors, which now were on the floor by her feet. Shuichi glanced up at the clock: _19:50._

He sighed exasperatedly and leaned over to Kaede. "Do you think he'll actually show up?" His voice low, tone uncertain.

"Sh! I'm confident. Just wait a minute. She's wrapping up her press conference anyway." She was almost silent, just a mumble escaping her. "Listen."

"Thanks for coming, e-everybody. I will be ready t-t-to sell the limited edition books in twenty m-minutes. I hope you en-enjoy." Toko smiled sweetly, though anyone could see that it was forced. Horribly forced. 

The same security guard Shuichi and Kaede were stopped by earlier crept past them towards the door. "What the-- The door won't open!" 

Every head in the room turned to look at him in an instant, the whole room beginning to panic slightly. Kaede, more so. She ran over to the door and began repetitively pounding her fists on it, desperate to get out until the security guard grabbed the girl's small wrists and told her that it was a waste of effort. A futile effort. 

"Wh-What happened?" Shuichi asked, the uneasy feeling in his stomach bubbling even more, beginning to froth. He knew what this meant. "We're locked in?" _He's here._

"Okay everybody! Stay calm! Try... To stay... Calm..." The pianist called optimistically despite breaking down herself.

**_THUD!_ **

"HAHAHA! Feels great to be back!" _That voice. That damned voice._ Shuichi knew too well who it was. He, much like everyone else, had turned back to the source of the childish cackling. Shuichi's mouth fell open at the sight, eyes wide, frozen in place. He couldn't believe it. The thief was here. Kaede was right all along. "Y'know, that author _stinks._ It's almost like she doesn't ever take showers." He pouted. "Maann... Am I gonna reek of that wench's stench for the next few months?" He was standing on top of the table, golden scissors in hand, with Toko out cold in a heap on the floor. 

"Don't you dare talk about Toko like that!" The criminal raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, and looked at the blonde girl the words had come from. "She's extremely talented, leave her alone!"

He laughed. "Um, okay? I don't care?" The cloaked boy put his free hand on his hip leisurely and his eyes darted towards the clock on the wall. "I am a little early... But the party can never truly start until I walk in!"

"Sir, we're going to have to ask you to step off the table and leave." One of the security guards said. They had been slowly approaching him, edging towards him at all angles.

He snorted. "And since when do evil leaders take orders?" A slight but sudden movement from one of the three men sneaking towards him. He knew what was going on now. He swung the large scissors out in front of him, opening them to reveal the sharper sides of the blades. "If any of you come any closer, I'm going to kill your stinky author. And then..." Violet eyes met golden ones and Shuichi's heart stopped as the thief finished his threat. "I'm going to kill _her._ " He pointed the blade in Shuichi's direction, though he knew that he wasn't talking about him. The villain was pointing past him, at the panicked pianist.

"L-Leave her alone!" He rebuked. He knew the thief wouldn't kill anybody, but he couldn't risk his closest friend and her favourite author being hurt. "Leave them both alone."

"Nee-heehee, you know what you have to do then, don't you?" His sinister smirk burned into Shuichi's mind, completely aware that he was under the shorter male's control. "Tell them to back off and get off of the stage. Do it. Tell them."

But what if he could get security to ambush him quickly? Or... Would that be dangerous? The thief would stab them, surely. With no other way out of this which would keep everyone from harm, Shuichi swallowed his pride and gave into him. "Get off of the stage. You may be willing to get hurt for the sake of everybody else, but this way is safer for you too."

Another childish fit of laughter from the purple haired imp echoed through the room as the security guards reluctantly did as they were asked. One of them slipped their phone out from their back pocket and dialed for the emergency services where the thief couldn't see. It gave Shuichi some hope that tonight would be a success - the thief would never have seen this coming so early. "Good boy, Mr Detective." The villain in white clapped mockingly as he cooed at Shuichi like a child. He regained his composure and for once his face was expressionless, no sadistic or demonic smiles or feigned pouts, as if a switch had flipped in him. "Now that we're all calm..." _Nevermind,_ Shuichi thought as the criminal's face distorted into one of amused malice. " _NOW!_ " He shouted, raising his voice higher than what seemed necessary.

"Huh?" 

Through the open windows, two thin arms reached into the narrow gap and tossed small canisters into the room below, before slamming the windows shut. The thief did the same, throwing two of his own in front of him. Instantly, the room began to fill with thick, white smoke which swallowed the entirety of the room's occupants. "Ooh, Boomer really did do a good job with upgrading them. I'll have to give him a pay raise!" He chuckled to himself quietly, impressed with the coverage of the dense smog.

Shuichi waved his hands in front of his face in an attempt to clear the air and get a better view of the thief's whereabouts. He slowly edged his way to where he thought the stage would be, tripping slightly on the bottom step. The smoke had cleared up a tiny bit from where he was standing. Shuichi scanned the room for any sign of the thief, but as he suspected, he was gone. What surprised Shuichi the most was that Toko had disappeared too. Did he take her? He had to save her!

He was about to take off after them, knowing they had left through the fire exit - the only other escape route - when a hand grabbed his arm tightly. "Shuichi, wait!"

He stopped and turned around slightly, his body only partially facing her. "Why? I need to stop him!"

Her other hand latched onto his shoulder with a grip of steel. "But you'll get hurt! He has the scissors! Maybe you should let him go... Just this one time." Her voice was laced with worry and concern. A pang of guilt struck him in the chest. Shuichi knew that she didn't have any ill intentions and was only trying to protect him, but this was his job. This was what he had to do.

So, in response, he uttered four simple words he knew would change her mind in a heartbeat. "Free limited edition book."

Shuichi had never seen the girl move so fast as she snatched her hands away and put them behind her back. "Go, Shuichi! Get him!"

Shuichi smiled cheerily at her before running after the pair through the fire exit door. As he surveyed the corridor for the duo, he found the thief at the opposite end outside the toilets. He was holding the door shut with all of his might, one foot on the wall for support. The determined detective ran towards him until the thief shouted a warning at him.

"Stop! Unless you _want_ to deal with an angry serial killer, back off." He hissed through his teeth as he evidently struggled to hold the door shut by the misplaced door handle.

"Angry serial killer? Wh- _What?_ " Shuichi may have just laughed it off and apprehended the thief straight away, but the loud banging and inaudible shrieks and screams from inside the boys' toilets convinced Shuichi to approach with caution. Although, he was pretty sure any girl being locked in the boys' restrooms would panic all the same in a fit of disgusted rage.

"Whatever. You wouldn't- ngh- understand! Shit!" The door burst open, sending the frail boy flying back into the wall, accidentally dropping the golden scissors beside the toilet door.

Toko stormed out thunderously and grabbed the short criminal by the neck before picking him up and slamming him into the wall with lightning speed like a soaring arrow. His feet were nowhere near the ground, dangling in mid air as he struggled in her unforgiving grip. He attempted to claw at her hands but his silky gloves slipped right over hers uselessly. "Who the hell do you think you are putting your hands up a girl's skirt? Only master can do that! Give me my scissors back or I'll add you to my list of victims right now!" She glowered threateningly. Shuichi hadn't noticed before, but she had an extremely long tongue which hung out of her mouth. Too shocked at what was happening to intervene or speak, he simply stood there frozen watching the man who had caused him so much trouble be strangled not even two meters away from him. 

"Shu-ich-i... H-Help!" He stammered, relentlessly gasping and spluttering desperately for air after each hoarse word he uttered. He kicked one foot at her, the other pressed against the wall as he strived to hold himself up, blowing her powerfully in the stomach but it was to no avail. "Let me- g-go, you fil-thy ska-n-k!" 

"Shut up, you worthless rodent! Give me back my scissors and I'll consider disposing of you in a nicer way." She dug her fingers into his neck harder, forcing him even further into the wall, if that was possible.

Heart racing at the sight, Shuichi began to panic. Was he about to witness a murder? He couldn't just stand there and watch someone be murdered right in front of him, even if he was an annoying, rude, selfish, manipulative criminal he despised with every single fibre of his entire being. And even though he wouldn't want to admit it, he didn't want the thief to die. Not right now. Not like this. He hesitantly bent down to pick up the scissors, holding them by the blades rather than the handle tightly, almost tight enough to break through the skin. He snuck up behind the girl who was solely focused on strangling the criminal, raising the weapon before closing his eyes tightly and striking the handle against her temple with incredible force for a weak boy such as himself. His eyes cracked open as she fell limply to the floor like a ragdoll, unconscious once again. The thief collapsed onto his knees, hands wrapped gently around his own neck as he choked and wheezed.

"Th-anks..." Still struggling to breathe and his head a dizzy mess, the devious imp got up and began to run off again bursting through the real fire exit doors into the fresh air. It was too early into the game to let the detective catch him. 

Shuichi groaned at his persistence, though there was a small part of him that admired it. With the golden scissors still in his hand, he gave chase for the second time that night. He stepped outside and the cold, summer evening air ghosted his especially pale skin as he paced further into the walled off area. The sunset barely illuminated the dingy area the building cast dark shadows over. There was a tall brick wall surrounding him, closing him off from the outside world. On the inside of the wall were several giant dumpsters which smelled awful enough to give someone a headache lined up against it. A few cardboard boxes and bits of torn up polystyrene were scattered across the ground carelessly, either dropped there for no reason or had fallen out of the bins. At the far end was a wide, tall metal gate which Shuichi assumed was locked. It would make sense, the gates wouldn't need to be opened unless the garbage was being disposed of. But the one thing he couldn't see as he paced hazardously further away from the door was the thief. It was silent, only the sound of his rapid heartbeat ringing in his ears could be heard. Did the thief get away?

His mind was changed instantly when he heard the door slam shut. Shuichi spun around to see the man he was looking for swinging three pairs of small silver scissors skillfully around his pointer finger. He pulled an apologetic look as he talked down to Shuichi like a child. "You were wrong, Shuichi. Wrong about the scissors. Your deductions were incorrect, looks like you're a bad detective." _No,_ Shuichi thought, _that's not true at all._ He knew something was off, but nobody believed him! Angrily, Shuichi attempted to rebut his faulty statement until the thief spoke before him. "I'm just kidding! That was a lie. I actually can't believe you figured out what the clue meant. I'm super impressed y'know."

"I got some help from my friends. Nothing is impossible." Shuichi stated, offended by his previous comment though the other boy had claimed it to be a lie.

He leaned against the door casually, as if he weren't really a criminal standing in front of the detective sent to apprehend him. "I'm more surprised that you actually got the calling card in general. Little miss Mahiru must have a soft spot for you, hm? Did you like the picture? We picked it out especially for your eyes to see." The phantom thief let out a shrill giggle at his twisted words.

Shuichi held up the heavy scissors, daring the shorter male to make any more revolting remarks. "You're all sick. Leave her alone."

Sighing irritatedly, the villain rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, okay, whatever you say. She's not as fun to mess around with as she used to be. Anyways, we know she blabbed to you about us so we can't really do anything to keep her quiet anymore, can we? But all that doesn't matter. It's in the past." He stood up straight and grinned sweetly. "What really matters is that we're here. _Together._ " Flashing his teeth in a wide smile, that final word sent horrific shivers down the detective's spine. 

Shuichi cringed inwardly at the dialogue and began to slowly pace towards the other male. He held the golden scissors up in front of him as if he were insinuating that he would stab the thief if he didn't comply. "Give me the scissors you have. I knocked Toko out, I can do the same to you. There's nowhere to run." His face was deadpan, serious, his voice even more so. 

The detective's request was met with a short burst of laughter. "PFFFF- Nope! You wouldn't _actually_ hurt me. Mister _Shuwichi Saihawa_ would never. Especially since you just saved my valuable, precious life."

"I would if necessary." He stopped moving closer, not wanting to be too close to him in case the thief attacked him like last time. The pain in his leg was almost unrecognisable, having dulled over the past week and he did not want to have to experience such excruciating agony ever again. 

"Oh? Is that so? That can't possibly be true because, if so, why would you have saved me back there?" The question took Shuichi aback. Why did he do that? Fear? Self defense? Panic? He didn't know himself. If the thief had been killed there wouldn't be any more thefts and DICE wouldn't be able to commit crimes anymore. Of course, that would mean Toko would be the biggest problem he had to deal with, but it would be much more simple than chasing a phantom thief. 

He hesitantly opened his mouth to speak. "If you had been killed, I'm sure Toko wouldn't have liked any witnesses. It was out of self defense. Anyway, I've got a lot to say to you." _Yeah. That's why._

"That's so sweet!" The masked villain gasped melodramatically. "You _like_ me, don't you?"

"Wh- No I-"

"Well, Romeo, you're in luck! Or should I call you Ro- _emo_?" He chuckled his signature laugh as he reached into his cloak and pulled out Toko's book. "I got bored waiting for the press conference to start so I snatched it off the table and skimmed through it whilst I was hiding."

Shuichi's golden eyes widened. "You... You were under the table? The whole time?" 

"Yup, nishishi... Bet you feel really stupid now." He had been smirking from the beginning of this conversation, but now it had twisted into a demonic, taunting grin as he continued to tease the detective. 

And he was right. Shuichi _did_ feel stupid. Especially since he was so sure that the thief wasn't anywhere to be found and there were no places to hide. He had checked everywhere he could think of, but he never would've thought of looking under the table. "I... Shut up. A-And I don't like you! I never will so just grow up and drop it."

"Yeah well I'm hot and sexy and cool so you're really missing out. I can easily change your mind though." The way the cloaked villain bragged about himself with a sing song voice made Shuichi want to do something as immature and childish as groan loudly to shut him up. The detective had thought to himself before that maybe he could learn to tolerate the thief's sleazy flirting but now Shuichi just wanted to hit him. Hard. 

"Fat chance." Shuichi rasped, holding his weapon even tighter in his hand.

The shorter of the two took a confident step forwards, the navy haired boy not wasting a second to take one back. "Relax, Shuichi," Another step, "I just want to read to you and act out my favourite scene." He cooed with a coquettish grin.

"Absolutely not."

"That's okay, Byaku Toga is a little tsundere brat at first but ends up admitting his feelings for Foko at the end of it." He began flicking through the book in search for the desired page. "Oh, was that a spoiler? My bad." He apologised, though his condescending tone said otherwise.

Shuichi took two slow steps back, knowing the thief finally didn't have his violet eyes glued to him, analysing every movement, every detail in his facial expressions and voice. He could have attacked the thief right then and finally unmasked him after a few long weeks of torment, however the thief would probably be anticipating it and attack him back. He'd wait for the police to arrive. He knew they'd already been contacted. "I'm not going to do whatever it is you want me to do. Stop it." He'd have to stall.

"Shh! I'm gonna start reading now, 'kay? I'm gonna be Foko!" He held the book with one hand, the three pairs of scissors dangerously in the other. Clearing his throat, the phantom thief started to read. "The air was heavy, thick with penitence. Foko (that's me by the way, in case you forgot) arrived at the docks where Byaku's butler said he would be. She scouted the area for him, catching sight of his gorgeous blond hair as it swayed in the evening breeze. Her heart fluttering at the view, she sprinted towards him knowing that this would be the last time she would ever see him before he left forever. 'Wait!' She called, waving at him. Byaku recognised the voice but didn't turn around. He couldn't bare to see her face, not right now. Foko called out to him again. 'Byaku... Please don't leave.'" The thief groaned at the book, evidently cringing at the content. He skimmed through some more lines before humming a sigh of satisfaction and continuing his reading. "Blah blah blah. Ah, here we go. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. 'I appreciate everything you've ever done for me, Byaku. You've given be the best five years of my life, all filled with a variety of adventures, and I will never forget any of them. I... I won't forget you either, Byaku. I could never. A-And I know sometimes I can be annoying but I just wanted to tell you..."

The thief crept closer to Shuichi, cupping his chin with the hand holding the scissors. Shuichi didn't dare move. "Stop it."

The imp shook his head with an open mouthed grin, determined to stay in character. "I love you..." He closed his eyes delicately and leaned in closer to Shuichi, his silky fingertips brushing briskly over his skin.

Shuichi's heart was racing. What the hell did the other boy think he was doing? He wasn't trying to kiss him, was he? On instinct, he leaned his head back slightly to avoid that happening. The thief was so close to him, but he could work with this. He placed his hand on the thief's cheek, ready to sneak his finger underneath the white mask and flick it off.

The villain's violet eyes flew open as he jumped back and threw the book at the detective's face. It smacked him hard in the nose before falling to the floor and Shuichi could feel tears just waiting to pour out building up. "Just kidding!" He frowned. "Silly Shuichi, I knew what you were going to try to do. I can't believe you would ever betray me like that! We were having a moment..." 

The golden eyed boy tried to ignore the pain in his nose as anger bubbled up inside of him, rising and rising inside of him. "Give it a rest and be quiet. I'm really not happy with you. Just hand yourself and the rest of DICE over."

"You're not happy with me? What did _I_ do?" The thief pointed to himself as if to confirm it it was him the detective was talking about.

He lowered his scissors though he still had an incredibly strong grip on them. "Don't play dumb - you know exactly what you've done. Calling me when I was out with my friend to threaten both me and the girl you've kidnapped? Leaving a note on my door to scare me into quitting my case? I'm not going to let you win. The game is up." Shuichi's voice was thick with conviction.

The thief stood still for a moment, pulling an expression which the detective was unable to comprehend as anything other than disbelief, an almost faraway look in his eyes as if he were lost in thought. "I didn't do that. Don't accuse me without any evidence." He rebutted, a sharp edge to his overall calm voice.

"You want evidence? I have evidence."

 _Oh, does he now?_ The thief smirked viciously, ready to hear what sort of evidence his little play thing had against him even though he was innocent. "You do? Well I'd love to hear it, my beloved detective."

Shuichi took a shallow breath. He was certain the thief was the culprit. He just had to prove it. "You know where I live - you came into my room so obviously you would know where my apartment is. And God knows if you snooped around! I bet you checked my phone for my number. That's my reasoning."

 _Bullshit explanation._ He didn't do anything wrong. Sure he broke in but he didn't snoop around, and he got his number in person. "Guess what, detective? Your reasoning is wrong. I wasn't involved in either of those things so, while I appreciate you thinking about me, stop going around and pointing your filthy fingers at just anyone because you don't like them!" Being accused like this hurt. More than he thought it would. It wasn't all on behalf of the detective, though. It was the thoughts of the other possibilities that hurt him the most. "There's no way it could have been me!"

The thief's constant denial just made Shuichi even more furious. Why was he being so persistent? Why couldn't he just admit it already? He was too angry to think straight and was ready to blurt out anything mindlessly from the top of his head. All that mattered was the thief admitting to this. "How couldn't it have been? All the evidence points to you!" 

Just to him? That wasn't true. He wished it was. "It couldn't have been me because I don't have any reason to threaten or kidnap anyone since I already have everything I need! Besides, there's no benefit to it - what would I get out of it? Why would I want you off the case? I _like_ being persued by you. This game of cat and mouse is super fun! And kidnapping and killing goes against DICE's rules. Does this reasoning satisfy you, Mr Detective?" Was this enough to convince him? Was it even enough to convince himself? 

Shuichi fell silent and still like he was trying to accept that explanation. "If it wasn't you, then who was it?" There it was. The big question that hurt the criminal the most.

"How the hell am I supposed to answer that? I don't know!" _He didn't want to know._

"I don't believe you." Shuichi scowled blankly.

The thief looked as if he were about to scream or shout or even explode right then. How desperately did he want to prove his innocence? Shuichi wondered. He opened his mouth to speak, perhaps to deliver one of those malicious, weaponised sentences that get flung out to hurt, to end conversations, and Shuichi braced himself for it. However, all that came out of his mouth was a gentle laugh. An empty, desolate laugh much different to his signature childish giggle. And then he spoke, his voice the calmest the detective had ever heard it. "That's your problem then, isn't it? Crybaby."

 _'Crybaby'_? That was it? Nothing targeting his already low self esteem? The thief returned to smiling sweetly as if that conversation had never happened in the first place. Shuichi followed suit, calming himself down too before hearing the sound of sirens growing louder. "Today's the day you get caught, thief."

"No! Arrest the serial killer instead!" The imp whined, stamping a foot on the ground immaturely.

Shuichi blinked. "You mean Toko?" 

"Mhm!" He glided towards Shuichi, once again swinging the scissors around his index finger without any worry of a pair flying off and stabbing either of them. "She's actually got a split personality, one being Toko and the other being Genocider Syo. Those tally marks on her thigh actually represent the number of men she's killed. Fascinating, right?" 

It finally clicked in Shuichi's head. "So the reason why she was so insistent that she didn't have any other scissors was because..."

" _Exactly._ " He stood beside the detective as if trying to get away from the door, the cries or the sirens growing louder by the minute. "So, a murderer is much more dangerous than a simple thief, don't you think?"

 _So that's what he's trying to do._ "While I do agree, I can't trust what you've said. I want proof that Toko is Genocider Syo." If proof was provided, Shuichi could have them both arrested. All he had to do was stall the thief, just as he was wanted to do earlier.

"Open your hand." The thief ordered, and Shuichi hesitantly complied. It was always better to be cautious. "Here. I've got five more pairs anyway. Just give these to the police and that should be proof enough. I'm saving a lot of lives by doing this for you, you should thank me by letting me off. Plus I only stole scissors, so..."

"And a camera. And an amethyst. And a robot prototype along with the blueprints. And a ton of jewellery. Need I say more?" Shuichi counted the list on his fingers to stress his point and remind the other male of his crimes. The purple haired menace was still going to be a thief no matter what he stole.

He sighed heavily. "Oh, come on! I won't even be stealing anything of importance or value anymore, and that's the truth!"

Shuichi's interest had been piqued. "There's going to be no more heists?"

"Maybe, nee-heehee. There won't be one for a little bit, so that gives you some time to relax for once. You do look a little stressed you, y'know? It's really showing on your face." His thin voice took on a pedantic tone as he faked a frown.

Shuichi scoffed at the unnecessary comment on his appearance, choosing to brush it off dismissively to focus on the main topic. "I can't relax until I've done my job, it's not that simple, and you'll be a criminal no matter what."

"Maybe so, but I don't care," He smiled to himself, "Because one day I'm going to control the world." His watch buzzed and he promptly checked it. "Ooh, my ride is here. About time."

Shuichi's eyes widened. The thief was going to get away! The screeches of the sirens were ear piercing, deafening, but at least it reassured Shuichi that help had arrived. He sprinted over to the fire exit door and, without hesitation, swiftly began pounding on the wood in the hopes that someone would find them before the thief escaped. "HELLO? WE'RE OUT HERE!" 

The thief sauntered casually towards the gate, confident that he would be getting away once again. Nothing could get him, he was invincible. "Give up, Shuichi. I win again. The police aren't gonna-" As if on cue the door burst open and three police officers poured out. "Shit."

"Freeze!" One of the trio shouted, reaching for a gun in his back pocket. 

His back was to the officers as he faced the gate so no one could see the unmasked look of dread and panic on his pale face. _One more minute,_ he told himself, _one more minute and his ride would be there._ And so, he put on the bravest, most collected expression he could and turned around. "Sorry, but you're too late." A checkered van pulled up outside the gates as he spoke. 

"Don't move or we'll shoot!" Another officer called, all three holding their guns up ready to fire. 

Shuichi held his breath, keeping it hostage behind a row of teeth. He didn't want to look or see the thief get shot, but at the same time he did. Every minute he'd spent chasing the thief lead up to this moment, so why was he worrying now? His eyes were glued onto the guns, those shiny, black guns held by the steady hands of the men who were threatening the boy's life. Why did he even care? He had been hurt, humiliated, threatened, annoyed and angered all by this one man. He hated him. But... Did he truly deserve death?

His mind flashed back to many years before - the day he solved an unsolvable murder case. He remembered the look in that man's eyes, the sorrowful bite in his voice when he told Shuichi he'd ruined his life. It was the day where Shuichi began to despise himself. He didn't mean to - he was just trying to help. Hiding from the truth was much better than dealing with the cruelty of it and the harshness of reality that sank in deep. He could see the same expression of bottomless dread in the criminal's eyes that he had seen all those years ago behind his smug facade. He could feel the guilt climbing up his throat, that familiar guilty sensation that plagued him. He had to stop this. So, that's why Shuichi decided to help the thief. Just this one time. It didn't mean anything. It was strictly out of pity, nothing more. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to let him get away just once. Shuichi told himself that his main focus now would be finding out why the thief did what he did. Of course he would still keep working hard to unmask the thief, but to avoid all the pain and hurt again he wanted to learn the motive behind it before he made the arrest. 

As he was about to shout something as a distraction, the heads of two long haired females popped up over the top of the wall on both sides of the gate. On the left was a girl with light brown hair in pigtails wearing a mask similar to the phantom thief's with the exception that it had a red clown nose sitting comfortably on it. On the right was a girl with long dark brown hair, her entire face covered by a white mask with a clown nose and small red lips. _DICE..._ Shuichi guessed, _so he doesn't come alone..._ Before anybody could react, the girls threw smoke bombs over the wall and the thief was engulfed in a ghostly white mist.

"Bye, fuckers! Smell ya later!" One of the girls shouted as the sound of a vehicle door being slammed echoed through the area, followed by the screeching of tires and an eruption of laughter.

One of the police officers reached for their radio. "The thief has escaped in a checkered van. It's an unmarked vehicle headed towards the outskirts of the city. Don't let them get away." He ordered as the trio began to hurry back into the building.

This was Shuichi's chance! He could buy the thief some time to get away. "Wait! Before you leave," He tugged on his black sleeve, "Toko Fukawa is Genocider Syo. I have proof here. It's not much but if you check back over the murder records these are the scissors that were used. And the tally marks on her thigh represent the number of victims she's killed." Shuichi held out the scissors the thief had given him. 

He turned around swiftly. "Thank you, detective. I'll have her taken in for interrogation." He took the scissors from Shuichi and hurried to leave.

Shuichi looked to the floor and his eye caught onto the book that had been thrown at him. He picked it up with a small smile. A promise was a promise after all.

The sound of heavy footsteps grew louder and louder behind him as a voice called out his name. "Shuichi!"

"Hm?" He turned towards the door. "Oh, hey Kaede. Are you alright?"

"I'm just fine, really. But the main thing is if you're alright? You're not hurt are you?" She asked worriedly, inspecting him for any cuts or scrapes.

"I'm fine, don't worry. I'm just really confused... But nevermind that," He handed her the book, "Here's the free book you really wanted."

His heart felt warm as her whole face lit up in an instant. "Really? Thank you so much, Shuichi!" Kaede pulled him into a hug which he returned without hesitation. "You're really the most amazing best friend I could ever ask for."

"It's no problem. I'm just happy you're happy." He beamed.

"We should leave," She said, releasing him from her hold, "We have a sleepover and lots of piano to listen to, after all."

That reminded him - they did. At least Kaede would be able to clear his head. He nodded. "You're right, let's go."

The duo left the complex together, everything the thief had said fresh in Shuichi's mind.

-

As soon as they had thrown themselves into the van, the thief screamed at Vigour. "GO GO GO! POLICE CHASE! WOO!" He smacked the back of the driver's seat a few times as Vigour slammed his foot down on the accelerator and sped off.

Screaming sirens surrounded them as they tried to escape the scene. Pigtails was crouched behind the passengers seat in a ball, holding tightly onto her head. "We're gonna get caught! DICE is gonna be over!" 

Aergia sat beside her and covered her mouth. "Shut up Pigtails! You're going distract Vigour with your whining and then we'll all die!" 

Ego, in the passenger seat, began rapidly tapping buttons on his control panel. "Stop arguing, you're going to put this genius off when he's got an idea as amazing as himself. I installed a cloaking device, similar to the one in the boss' cape. I could try it."

"Does it work?" Pigtails asked, raising her head. 

Ego shrugged. "I'm not quite sure, I haven't had an opportunity to test it out. But since _I'm_ the one who installed it, I'm very certain it will." 

"Just fucking do it or we'll all be caught, dumbass!" Aergia snapped. 

Ego tapped some more buttons quickly. "Cloaking device... Online!" 

"Cool!" The thief excitedly exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "Bravo Ego!" 

"It works but I estimate it'll only manage to hold for approximately fifteen minutes. Vigour, we're going to need to hide somewhere as soon as we can and wait for this all to blow over." He continued. 

"Fifteen?" The purple haired imp scowled. "Upgrade my cape! I only get five minutes."

"No."

"Why not?" He smirked. "Don't think you can do it?" 

Ego snorted. "Of course I can! Are you really going to underestimate _me_? I'm brilliant! In fact, to prove it to you, as soon as we get back to HQ I'm going to upgrade the invisibility feature to twenty minutes!" 

"You're so easily swayed..." Pigtails mumbled, darting her eyes in the opposite direction. 

The mischievous thief having gotten what he wanted, he sat back with a smug grin. That reminded him... "Hey, Vigour. Drop me off somewhere when we're safe. There's something I need to check up on."

"Got it, boss." He replied, focusing on the road. 

He was worried, but he didn't dare to voice his concerns. Tonight he would find out the truth. A truth he didn't want to learn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is here! It's a bit longer than all the other chapters so I hope it's still enjoyable.
> 
> If you have any theories then please go ahead and comment them, I'd love to hear what you think and see if anyone has any good ideas.
> 
> If anyone can tell me what Shuichi's realisation in the beginning is where they're at the press conference and it's said that 'something definitely wasn't adding up' I'll love you forever. 
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!


	13. Reality And Realisations

Under the dim spotlight of a moonlit sky, the phantom thief skillfully picked the lock on the detective's bedroom window and clambered inside, collapsing on the foot of the indigo bed in a heap. He had been dropped off close-by near a row of shops a few minutes prior, and had informed DICE that he needed to check on the amount of panta in the convenience store. Fortunately, no one had questioned him so his incredibly weak lie went unexposed and his plan could be carried out further. Pigtails had assumed that he just wanted to steal some and everyone else in the cloaked vehicle had agreed, warning him that if he got caught it would be his fault. Now, they were waiting nearby. He had to be fast. 

The boy sat up on his knees with a groan and looked around the dark room. As his eyes adjusted to the shadows, he carefully climbed off of the bed and made his way towards the light switch to turn it on. Once the light bulb flickered on and restored the lack of colour to the room, he began to search for the threat the detective had mentioned. 

No one was home, he knew Shuichi lived alone so he could make noise and explore to his heart's content. Although, he'd still keep noise to a minimum; he wouldn't want any neighbours recognising the presence of an intruder in the apartment. Keeping that in mind, he crept hastily towards Shuichi's desk. Stuck on the wall above it was the photograph he had taken during the second heist and given to him that night where he had first broken into Shuichi's apartment. He'd printed all of the others too, but had kept them hidden in his own bedroom at HQ as souvenirs. 

"So he kept it, huh?" The criminal muttered to himself, an amused half-smile cracking at his lips. "He really is strange." 

Averting his gaze from the photograph, he reminded himself that he had work to do and began rummaging through the desk drawers. As he dug further into the drawer, he couldn't help but think to himself that maybe he shouldn't have come at all. Anxiety bubbled in his chest, frothing like a malevolent cauldron filled with panic and uncertainty. Maybe it was the fact that he didn't want to suspect his friends– his _family._ Maybe it was the thought that they could have gone behind his back and betrayed him. Maybe it was the idea that perhaps DICE hated him, and as much as he despised liars, he hoped the detective was lying about all of this.

Even though he had his doubts, he still had faith in his friends. It couldn't be true, not a chance. DICE would never do something like this without running it through with him first. DICE respected him - he was the leader! They were going to rule the world together, and finally be _happy._ Tch, this was all ridiculous. The thief reached the bottom of the drawer and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Without proof of the detective's claim, there was no way he would believe him. Having made no progress, he left the room and headed for the living room. 

He turned the light on in there, too, and scrutinised the scene. On the coffee table was a pile of paper beside a laptop, the screen turned off and lid shut halfway. The purple haired criminal, slightly hopeful that this may further prove DICE's innocence, hurried towards the table. Without hesitation, he sifted through the sheets, analysing the contents of each one as he did. It had only taken him a moment to realise that these were related to tonight's heist - the apprentice detective's explosions of the calling card hint. He grinned at the neatly written notes, a smirk pulling at the edges of his mouth. 

Was this how he managed to come to the conclusion he did? Even when he was certain that even if he did obtain the calling card that the hint would be almost impossible to crack? Shuichi Saihara was one smart man - perhaps he had underestimated him. He flipped through the rest of the papers and still found nothing that would point to his enemy being threatened. Was Shuichi Saihara, the famous crybaby apprentice detective, a dirty, rotten liar? It seemed so. 

He chuckled lightly to himself, combing one gloved hand through his loosely tied back hair. It really was too good to be true. He had been lied to, tricked, deceived by the investigator who had put on quite the convincing act. He backed away from the table and decided it may just be best to leave, turning back towards the bedroom door he had left wide open.

As he once again approached the light switch to cover his tracks like he had never been there to begin with, his eyes caught a glimpse of a final white sheet of paper planted face down on the dining table. He huffed at the sight, considering just ignoring it, but something told him to double check just in case... 

_So he did._

He held his breath as he reached for the paper, knowing the result of his action would either confirm or deny his suspicions. It would finally prove who truly was the liar. He snatched the paper off of the polished wood, staring at the blank back of the sheet. Did he really want to do this? Did he want to learn the truth? Would he be better off being blissfully ignorant to the whole situation rather than facing the harsh reality of it? 

He was perfectly content living in his bubble of lies and delusion where life always went his way and the Earth revolved around him. That's the way it had always been, after all. Ever since the day he and his friends had ran away from home to escape their old lives, that's the person he had been. The truth had always hurt him, so, he had thought to himself, why not just abandon it and live in a world of lies without a single care or worry? 

But now he cared. And he was worried.

He snapped at himself internally to keep it together as he flipped the paper over. His eyes immediately fixated onto the angry red words printed on it without hesitation as he mumbled the words to himself, gradually trailing off and growing silent. Shuichi had unknowingly planted the seed of doubt into his mind and heart, however now he himself was certain it had sprouted. Blossomed, even, into thorny brambles which coiled tightly around his conscience and dug into his soul like jagged knives. "Wh-What? This has just gotta be some elaborate prank. There's... There's no way..." 

There's no way on earth that this could be real. It was a cruel prank. A twisted joke. _A lie._ One of those lies he loved so much.

And that's when it finally sank in. The cold, heart-shattering reality he had feared and pushed to the back of his mind out of disbelief. But now it was prominent, jabbing him fiercely like a thousand sharp needles coated in thick layers of intense suffering. 

He stumbled backwards, violet eyes wide and fingers trembling as he held onto the paper with a vice-like grip of steel. It wasn't a lie. No, it was far from it. It was the truth; the very thing that frightened him the most, reducing him to the neglected, terrified child he truly was deep down. In that moment, he felt nothing. He stood there, still, unmoving, eyes glued to the lifeless wall ahead of him as small beads of heavy sweat trickled down his forehead. Nothing was responding.

He closed his eyes and drew in deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. Although what he'd learned really cut deep, he'd be fine! All he had to do was hit the reset button on his emotions and everything would be A-okay! He'd trained himself for years for things like this, just in case his true emotions ever slipped out. 

Even so, he couldn't help but wonder why DICE would do such a thing behind his back? He wouldn't have minded too much if they had asked for permission but not even Shade, his own best friend, decided to ask him about it. They had to have a good reason for keeping it a secret, right? And they did trust him, right? And cared about him? And loved him? _Right?_ Because they were his family! 

He fought the urge to cry, instead forcing laughter to spill from his lips. It was unhinged, his throat cracking and gurgling as he cackled. This feeling was far too familiar; this anguished feeling of being unwanted, unloved, unimportant, digging its sharp claws into his heart as the excruciating pain ran through his entire being all the way back to his pitiful childhood. 

Disparaging remarks, heart-wrenching agony, bruises and beatings, the memories of everything that had numbed him were beginning to emerge from the bottomless void of his mind. And as the thoughts became more protuberant, playing on repeat as if on a sideshow on the projector of his brain, his laughter became softer, pathetic chokes tearing themselves from his sore throat. He still refused to cry. Supreme leaders of evil never cried. Not for anything or anyone, because if he cried he'd be weak. Weak and pitiful. Unworthy of leading his organisation. Not good enough for DICE. Never ever good enough. 

Families were supposed to be loving and trustworthy and safe and—

And the only _real_ family he had ever known were seemingly no different to his own parents.

DICE had been his saving grace all those years ago. _Shade_ had been his saving grace. His hero. The light at the end of the tunnel. The bright star in the sky guiding him home. So why had it ended up like this? How could Shade let this happen? _Why_ would Shade let this happen? 

"This is fucking bullshit."

He spat out the words, his tone something akin to disgust as if the taste of them on his tongue was bitter and vile and he needed to expell them immediately. The thief slammed the paper back on the table where he had picked it up, no longer wanting to touch such a vulgarity and, falling deafeningly silent, left the room, flicking the light off on the way out. 

He left everything the way he found it, undamaged and in good condition, as he threaded himself back through the window. He'd wasted enough time just standing there like an idiot worrying about stupid things; his subordinates were sure to be questioning his whereabouts by now. But that was fine, he supposed. If they were going to _lie_ to _him_ \- the king of all liars - about something as big as _this_ , then fine, he'd let them believe he still saw them as equals. He would play dirty too, fighting fire with fire.

As he strategically scaled down the building, he wondered how long this affair had been going on for. A couple of weeks? Months? Maybe years. He hated the thought of it, if he was being honest. He hated that he was wrong about DICE, and Shuichi, that goddamn awful detective, was right. It made his blood boil. As much as he had believed his friends were as loyal and faithful as he was towards them, the evidence proved otherwise and he had to accept that.

Anyone besides the phantom thief may have been discouraged by this and would confront their friends, but not him. Hell no, he'd play their game. He'd play it and ruin it. If anything, it drove him on to rebel harder. If DICE hated him being around the detective so much, then he supposed Shuichi would be seeing a lot of 'both' of them before the next heist. DICE didn't need to know he knew about their dirty scheme. In fact, DICE didn't need to know about his own scheme he was piecing together in his perfectly devious mind.

DICE didn't have a single clue about what they had just started. A storm was coming. 

-

Kaede cheerfully unlocked her front door, a bright grin flourishing across her face as she hurriedly rushed inside like an excited child, Toko Fukawa novel in hand. Shuichi chuckled at her enthusiasm and followed inside, shutting the white door behind him. 

Kaede dashed into the living room and called out to him. "Shuichi! Come on! Tonight is gonna be great!"

"Right!" The navy haired boy answered and entered the room, immediately being enveloped in that familiar sweet fragrance that held the very essence of the pianist. 

Upon entry, he could see Kaede setting her book down on the coffee table, a proud grin stretching across the entire width of her face as she carefully did so. It appeared that she really was happy that she was able to aquire one of the limited edition versions of the book for free, and Shuichi couldn't help but feel a little pride swell within him at the thought that he was the one who made his childhood friend feel such elation; he was the reason why the pianist was smiling so brightly. A grin of his own tugged lightly at his lips at the sight as he seated himself on the sofa. 

The blonde girl turned to face Shuichi, pushing the TV remote across the surface of the gleaming table. "Make yourself at home! I'm gonna go and make us some drinks, but first I'm gonna go to the bathroom. Watch TV for a little while or something. I'll be back in no time at all."

The detective picked up the remote control and nodded. "Okay. No problem." He waved to the girl with one hand as she exited the room in a hurry.

He turned on the TV with a yawn and shuffled around in his seat to get comfy as the rumbling of the kettle being boiled grumbled in the background. He watched tiredly as the black screen exploded with colour, somehow seemingly unsurprised when the TV was on the news channel. With his awful luck, it wasn't that big of a shock. It also wasn't that big of a shock when the heist from earlier on that night was being displayed. Shuichi sighed irritatedly and held the remote out in front of him ready to change the channel, however something caught his eye.

CCTV footage had been captured of himself and the thief outside the building where he had confronted him, though that wasn't what intrigued him. From where he had been standing, and due to the smoke bombs, his view of the vehicle the criminal had escaped on had been obscured. Now he had a proper view of it, the familiarity of it in particular. Checkered and unmarked. The same vehicle from that incident all those years ago? _No_ , he thought, switching the channel over to a music station, _that's not possible. They're dead._

The incident from eleven years ago had caused an eruption of panicked dismay from the entire country, with news article upon news article being published, along with expensive money rewards for anyone who could provide any sort of information regarding the whereabouts of the young victims. News of ten young children all disappearing on the same day in the same mysterious unmarked vehicle spread like an epidemic, shaking everyone's hearts to the core. The investigation searching for them lasted for six years before the case finally was closed and all ten children had been presumed dead. No bodies were found and any trace that the children had ever existed had disappeared. 

Of course, the incident devastated many families, but no one had been more distressed than Kaede. She was just a child, too, and being thrown into such a traumatising situation had a great impact on her. Kaede suffered more than anyone. She had begged Shuichi, tears streaming down her puffy red face - a face that had burned itself into his mind, to help her with his detective skills, but he wasn't good enough of a detective to be of any assistance to her.

Kaede blamed herself for the loss of her sister, despite knowing that there was not much she could've done. However, that didn't stop her from yearning to turn back time and do everything right. What if she had noticed quicker? What if she had kept a better eye on her? Would she have been able to prevent the kidnapping then? So many questions. But it was too late now. The victims were dead. Her little sister was dead. Nothing could be done to turn back time and change that fact. It was a harsh truth that everyone had to live with, even Shuichi.

But this got him thinking.

He flicked the channel over to a music station and sat back in his seat, finding a comfortable position. His thoughts about the past and the possibility of unravelling the truth fizzing in his mind began to dissolve as he focused more on the upbeat rhythm of the song and shook himself back into reality. 

Shuichi plucked his phone from his pocket and unlocked it. He smiled at the full bar WiFi signal, not thinking much of it, and decided to check Powwow whilst he had the chance; he didn't like to be on his phone when he was spending time with Kaede - they had both agreed that it was rude. So, making the most out of the time the pianist was upstairs, he opened up the app and checked for any new messages. 

To his surprise, there were none. Not any from Kaito or Maki, or even Kokichi for that matter, but he was the last of his worries right now. He was sure Kokichi was just fine. He and Kokichi had only recently become friends so it wasn't too odd that he hadn't initiated any conversations. Kaito and Maki on the other hand... He was sure they'd have something to say. Results of the scan? Talking about something ridiculous that had happened? Simply saying hi? It was unusual, but they did say they were going to be busy now. Shuichi began to think that maybe he shouldn't bother them or get in their way after all. 

He sighed and refreshed his feed. He tried to, at least. Every time he swiped down on his screen a network error message would pop up. The detective's eyes darted up to his WiFi signal only to discover that the icon wasn't even showing. _Damn._ He huffed to himself in both confusion and annoyance as he remembered that Kaede's internet wasn't working and slipped his phone back into his pocket, slumping down further in his seat. 

The murmurs of the kettle came to a stop, catching Shuichi's attention. Kaede had turned it on before she went upstairs but she hadn't yet returned. He hadn't heard her come back down and even though the stairs didn't squeak when climbed up, the blonde was always sure to chirp a happy 'hello' as soon as she hopped off of the bottom step. Was she alright?

He pulled himself up off of the sofa and peeked his head out of the doorway. "Kaede? Are you okay?" He called, only to receive no response.

Should he... Investigate?

He crept out of the room, feeling like he was doing something he really shouldn't have been, tiptoeing up the stairs with the stealth of a predator. Every few steps he would pause, sharply sucking in his breath and gripping tightly onto the banister as if the floor could cave in beneath his feet at any moment. 

What was Kaede doing? The thought that she could still be in the bathroom had come to mind, but if the door was discovered to be shut then he'd just leave her be and go back downstairs to wait for her. If she wasn't in there then where could she have gone? And why didn't she answer Shuichi's shout? It was uncharacteristic for her to pull something like this, which is why it concerned Shuichi the most. Was Kaede just pulling a prank on him? She was probably waiting around the corner ready to pounce at him. As he reached the top of the stairs, he squeezed his eyes shut and braced himself for impact.

But that impact never came. He cracked his eyes open for a split second before opening them fully, examining the empty hall stretching far to the right of him. He stepped around the corner cautiously and pushed lightly on the bathroom door as it swung open effortlessly. He gritted his teeth, ready to spew out an avalanche of apologies before realising that Kaede was nowhere to be seen. _What?_

Shuichi hesitantly stepped backwards and darted his eyes to the side. It was possible that Kaede was in her room. He began approaching the white bedroom door cautiously, knowing he shouldn't really be doing this at all. Whatever Kaede was doing was none of his business but it was too late to turn back now. What would he say if he were caught trying to make his way back to the living room? That would look more suspicious than anything else. He came to a stop outside the door and used the back of his hand to lightly knock on the smooth wood before pushing the door open. Adjusting to the darkness, Shuichi entered the room. 

He reached out for the light switch, the panicked thoughts never leaving his head as he trespassed. As his finger hit the switch Shuichi's eyes were met with a sight he'd never thought he would see. Whilst the room was a soft pink with cream carpeting and had neatly arranged oak furniture pushed up against the walls, what caught his immediate attention was the bed in the far right corner. His eyes scanned across the pink and white sheets, tarnished with black smudges and splodges, most of which had been reduced to grey marks as it was clear that there had been attempts to wash them off. _What,_ he wondered, _were they? And why were they there?_

However, those marks were not what Shuichi was looking for. Kaede was not in the room. She couldn't have left the house, could she? It certainly was a possibility. But just to make sure... "Kaede?" He called once again. He wasn't surprised not to receive a response. 

What he was surprised about was the hand which grabbed his shoulder and jerked it backwards. "Why are you in my room?" 

Shuichi jumped, gasping loudly as he spun around to face the source of the angry-sounding voice. "I-I was looking for you. You weren't replying so I was worried."

Kaede's face visibly relaxed as she took a step back, looking more than ready to leave. "Oh. Alright. We'll I'm here so let's go back downstairs and—"

"Can I ask you a question first?"

The pianist froze. "A question? Sure." She had a hunch that Shuichi was about to interrogate her about the state of her room, a topic she had avoided for the entirety of her life.

"What are those stains on your bed?" And of course her hunch had proven to be true.

Kaede felt something drop uncomfortably in her stomach as she swallowed thickly. "Nothing. Okay let's leave now—"

"Is there a reason why you're acting so suspiciously, Kaede?" He'd crossed a line and he knew it, but his curiosity had taken over and he wanted answers.

The blonde felt tears welling up in her eyes slowly, daring to spill out across her flushed cheeks. She repeated the words 'don't cry, don't cry' in her head as she sank to her knees and her hands came up to cover her face. "Don't– Don't look at me. Please." But it was too late. Those tears that she had tried so hard to hold back came streaming down her face.

Shuichi was taken aback by the action. He hadn't meant to make her cry! "K-Kaede? Are you okay?" He knew she wasn't, it was a ridiculous question. He had no idea what to say, especially as he never expected Kaede to react this way to his question. Perhaps he should have kept his mouth shut.

"I'm sorry." She peered up through her fingers, wiping beneath her eyes with her thumbs despite her efforts being meaningless; more tears tumbled out as quickly as she wiped them away. "I'm didn't want you to find out. Not this way."

It suddenly dawned on Shuichi that the situation may have been more serious than he thought. He gulped silently, feeling immensely guilty for what he had done. "Find out what?"

"I..." She sniffed as she steadied her breathing. Did she want to tell him? Could she tell him? She trusted him, more than anyone in the world, but what if he laughed at her? No, she couldn't run from herself anymore. She knew after this Shuichi would never rest easy unless she told him the truth. "I just get really, really down sometimes, often for no reason. Especially at night. When I'm alone and left to think of the past. You don't have to worry about me though, I'll be fine."

"Kaede..." The apprentice detective frowned as he crouched down in front of her, placing a hand comfortingly on a trembling arm. "This may be a little forward and personal and I certainly may be jumping to conclusions but... Do you have depression?" 

Kaede forced a light chuckle and wiped her eyes. "Your detective skills never seem to fail me. I've had it for years but everything has been getting awful recently."

"I promise I'll always be there for you. I know I'm really not the best at giving advice or comforting people, but I swear I'll always be by your side when you need someone." He beamed softly, his hand rubbing the pianist's arm gently. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I don't know. I didn't want you to treat me differently, I guess. I didn't want you to treat me like I was special just because of my mental illness and I didn't want anyone to worry about me. I'd just be a burden." Kaede mumbled with a voice thick with guilt. 

She did trust Shuichi, there was no doubt about it, but she had never seemed to allow herself to trust Shuichi with this. She did want to tell him, but she was supposed to be strong and happy and look after Shuichi. If he knew the truth surely he'd think she was weak.

The boy in question pulled her into a reassuring, warm hug. "You could never be a burden. I'm always gonna be here for you, Kaede, no matter what. You can talk to me about anything if you ever need someone to talk to; talking it out and getting it off your chest can help you feel better. Bottling it up can be harmful. Heh, you taught me that."

"Thank you." She stood up, wiping the remainder of her tears away. "Thank you so much."

"You don't need to thank me. You've always been there for me, so it's only natural I repay the favour. You're my closest friend." Shuichi stood up with her, still feeling quite taken aback by what Kaede had told him.

"I'm grateful to have you." And she was. He was her best friend; he meant everything to her. She didn't deserve him, he was too sweet. "I need to boil the kettle again - the water has probably gone cold by now."

"Ah, no need. I'll do it for you so you can take a break and relax. Why don't you put something you want to watch on TV? I hope this is an acceptable apology for being so nosy." He consoled gently. 

Kaede thought about it for a moment, staring in place at a spot on the wall before opening her mouth slightly and pulling it into a small grin. "Alright. Sounds good to me. Let's leave then."

Shuichi left first as Kaede switched the light back off and shut the door tightly before following him downstairs once again. He still had no idea where Kaede had been all that time but that was the least of his worries at that moment. Shuichi couldn't believe that someone as seemingly perfect and happy as Kaede would have to put on such a cheerful front just so she could avoid having people worry about her. It upset him to think about the sweet girl he'd grown up with suffering so much, but he understood. She'd been through so much and yet she still stood so strong. Kaede was an amazing young woman. He'd make sure he was always there for her; she didn't have to stand alone. 

Shuichi recalled that this time of year was around the time where Kaede's younger sister had been abducted. Perhaps that was the reason why she was feeling so terrible. It was a cruel truth to have to face, even now the pianist struggled to accept the harsh reality of the incident. She absolutely refused to accept that her little sister was dead. She insisted that she was out there somewhere, alive and waiting for rescue. That she would find her and save her and reunite their family again. Shuichi hated seeing Kaede in such a desperate state, clinging onto lies so hopefully and rejecting the truth. It was a sight for sore eyes, but Shuichi couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth and break her heart, a heart so fragile and delicate.

Kaede entered the living room quietly as the detective made his way to the kitchen to make the pair of them a much needed warm beverage. As he prepared the drink, he could hear the faint but familiar melody of Clair De Lune being emitted from the other room. From all the time they had spent together, as well as having memorised Kaede's favourite order at the cafe, Shuichi knew just what the girl liked. He hoped the kind gesture would help to cheer her up, even if it was only a little bit.

He carried both mugs back into the living room where Kaede was sat at her piano, fingers dancing across the keys as the instrument emitted the most beautiful sound. A harmonious crescendo of emotion and self expression in that amicable melodic minor key which replenished the peace in the soul.

Almost in a trance like state, Shuichi placed Kaede's mug on the top of her piano and smiled at her playing. She smiled and nodded slightly in acknowledgement and continued to play, determined to finish the movement as gracefully as possible.

"Thanks, Shuichi." She beamed softly as she began playing the third movement of the favoured romantic concerto with elegance. 

"Ah, there's no need to thank me, really. I'm just trying to help." Shuichi replied solemnly, an edge of sincerity to his tone.

This whole situation had left a bitterly familiar taste in his mouth. When Shuichi had been suffering due to his failure as a detective following the first heist, Kaede had been there to console him and help him through his desperate time of need. She had invited him to stay at hers and had done so this time, too, however this time around it had been him trying his utmost best to comfort the distressed pianist. This time he was the one who would take care of her, to make sure she was okay and do everything in his power to help her feel better. 

Warm coffee in hand just like all that time ago, he let everything sink in. The familiar scenario, the familiar setting. The equally familiar melody seeping soothingly into their souls. The friendship they shared was undeniably special. Precious. They would always be there for each other. They wished they would always be there for each other. 

But in the real world wishes don't always come true.

-

The purple haired phantom strolled cheerfully into the control room with an ebullient air surrounding him as the noisy doors clattered shut behind him. His feigned positivity made it seem as if nothing had happened earlier and the event which had put so much strain on his heart hadn't occurred, not as far as anyone else in his organisation was aware of anyway. They weren't going to find out. He was a skilled liar, a master of deceit; he could do this easily.

He peered around the corner towards Minerva's large computer screens out of the corner of his eye, noting that the woman wasn't there. It was peculiar as the woman rarely left her station but that wasn't what concerned him most. It was the two other men in the room, one of which he most certainly did not want to associate himself with at the minute. As he crossed the centre of the room heading towards his throne upon the platform, Shade loudly cleared his throat to gain his attention.

The thief grinned warmly as he spun on his heels to face his closest, most trusted _friend._ "You good there buddy? You need something?"

His response was an aggravated sigh accompanied by a stressed pinch to the bridge of his nose. The imp held back a gulp - Shade never took his hands out of his pockets or sleeves unless he absolutely had to. He was in trouble, and DICE's second-in-command was not afraid to show it. "Care to tell me where on Earth you were?"

The criminal's desired retort would no doubt have been a sneer of 'Care to tell me why you've been a backstabbing piece of shit?' but instead he forced himself to keep his cool. _The show must go on_ , he told himself as he, sweet as ever, chirped a reply. "Well, I wanted panta. Like, I _really_ wanted panta. But then I got too lazy and just came back instead."

"Right." Shade glared at his colleague with a snide look of disbelief painted across his features but swallowed the pathetic excuse nonetheless. He tucked his hand back into his pocket, where it would likely stay until the next time he was disappointed or annoyed with one of his coworkers. "I have faith that you're in possession of the scissors, yes?"

An enthusiastic nod. "Uh huh! Mission success, Shade! I have a grand total of... Drumroll please..."

"Get to the point."

"Ugh, whatever. I have five pairs." The boss pouted at the ground childishly. "You're no fun."

The taller of the two raised his eyebrow "Five? Didn't she have six? Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm certain Genocider Syo always carried six pairs around with her at all times. It's what made her so easy to locate."

She _did_ have six. But he gave a pair to the detective as evidence in order to trade her in place of himself. That sort of cooperation wouldn't go down well with Shade. It wouldn't be a smart move. "Nope! Just five. I should know - I had to put my delicate angel hands up that filthy hag's skirt to retrieve them."

Another successful lie swallowed effortlessly. "Oh. That's strange. I was sure..." He sighed. "No matter. Can I have the scissors to pass over to Gadget?"

The thief hopped backwards, a bright smile on his face as if he were playing a game. An almost funny comparison. "Nah, no need. I'll give them to him myself. I wanna see how the project is coming along anyways." 

Shade opened his mouth to reply but his boss swiftly ran from the room with a chuckle, leaving the two other males in the room alone. "Ego."

Ego looked up from his tablet as he scribbled down a final few words, his boss' cape hanging over his forearm ready for modification. "Yes?" 

The long haired boy narrowed his eyes, steeled with tenacity. "I need you to do me a favour."

"What can my godly self do for you?"

"I need you to keep a close eye on him as well as the detective from now on, just in case he learns too much. Whilst our boss is impeccably intelligent, he fails to realise that I've always been able to see through his lies - especially the weak ones he was choking out a moment ago. I don't know how much he already knows or if he knows anything at all, but it's best to he cautious, although I fear it may already be too late."

Ego nodded slowly but attentively. "And what do you suggest we do if it's too late?"

"Then the deal is off and he becomes the very first victim for the project, along with the girl."

"Wouldn't that be dangerous?"

"Undeniably, but it's a risk we must take." Shade stepped forwards away from the other male. "Anyways, that's enough talking. We have work to do."

-

The purple haired imp burst into the laboratory carelessly, darting through the doors as if he were in another of his infamous police chases. "Hey! Pineapple boy! Piña colada!"

Gadget was at his work station leant cautiously over the table with an extremely concentrated look cemented onto his face, however that expression quickly crumbled into one of surprise as he shot back up straight with a gasp. "Boss? Don't do that! This is important work y'know?!"

"Yeah, yeah, my bad." The shorter of the two rolled his eyes and laced his fingers behind his head nonchalantly with his usual jovial cheeriness. "So... I brought the goods."

Gadget was still composing himself after the fright as he lifted his goggles from his eyes. "Ah nice, thanks." The blond extended a hand expectantly. 

The thief handed over the tools without a second delay as his attention was stolen by the device on the tabletop. "Woah! She's coming along pretty well Gadget."

The taller of the two chuckled as he paced over to his tool bench. "Yep, she really is. You know, we're actually ahead of schedule. We're really close to finishing now."

"Ooh, exciting!" The organisation leader sang as he clasped his hands together, inspecting the device with an intrigued smile of curiosity spanning the width of his face. "I can't wait to see this bad boy in action! The first person I'm gonna test it on is Shade!" 

Gadget froze. "Shade?" _Did he know?_ "Haha, why's that?" 

The shorter put his finger to his lips as if in thought. "Hmm. Well, he's strong minded! If we really wanna test the project out good and well then we gotta use it on someone who's likely to be able to break free... Or something like that."

The blond inventor sighed silently, relieved. "Oh, I get it now. Sorry, I misunderstood. You two are best pals so I wouldn't understand why you'd want to hurt him."

"Yeah we're real close." The purple imp mumbled with an almost unnoticeable mocking edge to his voice.

Having not picked up on this, the other boy turned around and made his way back over to the leader. "That's good. I miss the good old days where you two smiled and laughed together all the time. Shade has changed a lot since before all this began, don't you think?"

Two small yet mighty fists crashed down on the table. "Can we stop talking about Shade?"

The other stood still, wide eyed. "Boss?"

"Oh, nee-heehee, I'm just tired and stressed out. It's hard work living two excitingly eventful lives y'know?" The purple haired boy chuckled in a desperate attempt to break the rising tension, lifting his hand to his neck unknowingly and rubbing it in the process.

He also hadn't realised that the details of the events from earlier on that night had been exposed. Gadget, who was concerned about the short dictator, wasn't hesitant to question his friend. "What happened to your neck, buddy? Did you try to... Hurt yourself?" The topic put the boy on edge. It was something serious to him, painful, too, but if a friend were in need then he'd push away the ghost of his past into the back of his mind for a while. 

The smaller raised an eyebrow in confusion before realising what his companion was talking about; a bracelet of dark bruises littered his neck. His fingers gently traced the angry reddish-brown marks which were beginning to form, wincing slightly at the feeling. "Hurt myself?" It took the boy a moment to register what was meant and, understanding the gravity of it, responded quickly. "No, no, I would never. This world can't function without a supreme leader like me to rule over it! Anyways I was nearly killed by that stinky psycho and I am so lucky I lived. I managed to fight her off with my bare– gloved hands. You shoulda seen it, I took that rat down like it was nothing."

"There's no way you would have been able to fight back. What's your secret?" Gadget rebuked in disbelief, folding his arms.

A mischievous smile cracked at the corners of the leader's lips. "Nee-heehee, that detective loves me soo much that he hit her to save me. Isn't that just _romantic_?"

Gadget first responded with a blank stare before shaking it off without a care in the world. "Oh alright. That's nice. Just be careful when you're around him. He knows what you look like without the whole phantom thief disguise and, I don't mean to try to match up to Ego's level of self-proclaimed omnipotence, but no matter what we tell you I know you're going to keep defying our wishes and see the detective." He gave a small half smile as he tried to be supportive and kind, even if he did disagree with what was coming out of his mouth. 

The thief let out a clamour of his signature laugh before putting a hand delicately to hit chest. "Aw you know me so well, Gadget. I'm flattered. He'll never figure it out, even if I played Rapunzel and let my hair down right in front of him. I can toy with him as much as I like."

"Yeah, that may be the case but don't go out unless those marks are covered." Gadget warned as he reached into his trouser pocket and pulled out a small tube. He placed it into his leader's hand. "Here. Cover it up with this."

The violet eyed male tilted his head to the side as he held the product in front of his face and inspected it with a flat expression. "Is this concealer?" 

Gadget winced as he pulled his goggles back over his eyes and turned back to his work nervously. "Uh, yeah. Don't tell Minerva."

"Why do you have Minerva's concealer?" The shorter of the two questioned as he tucked it into his pocket, thinking about the wide range of ridiculous yet possible answers he could receive.

Unfortunately for DICE's leader, Gadget was fast to evade the likely personal but juicy question and hurriedly grabbed his teammate by the shoulders and steered him towards the door. "I don't have it - you do. Now I've got work to do cya later, bye!"

"'Kay! Bye for now, nerd!" He giggled as he was shoved through the door before it was slammed heavily behind him. 

As soon as he had been exiled his faked smile seemed to do the same, disappearing from sight as he began to walk away, heading for his (and Shade's) bedroom. A dark gloom shadowed his face as he stormed off impassively in a heedless gait. He needed to plan his next moves.

-

The childhood friend duo were lounging comfortably on the couch, Kaede sitting right in the middle whilst Shuichi sat closer to the arm. It had been Shuichi's idea to watch something on TV to clear their heads, yet there Shuichi was on his phone trying to log onto Powwow despite their rule of not having phones out when they're together. He had been online earlier, however now that was not the case. It was strange but Kaede did say her WiFi wasn't working correctly, so there was nobody to blame.

Kaede, on the other hand, was immersed in the action, sitting forwards on the edge of her seat with an expression of pure thrill and excitement plastered across her face which was still slightly red and puffy from crying.

Shuichi tapped her on the shoulder to tear her attention away from the television. "Hey, um, Kaede?"

"Yeah? You okay?"

"I had connection earlier but I don't have it now. What's up with that? Is it still broken?" The detective asked, motioning towards his phone with a single finger. 

"Hm? Oh, oh right, yeah it's been weird since yesterday. It just comes and goes whenever." She shrugged as she slouched back in her chair and continued to watch the movie, unlocking her phone with one hand. "I'll tether you to my data... Here."

"Ah, thanks." Shuichi beamed and looked away. Now he'd finally be able to do what he had planned to do earlier on. "Do you wanna go out on Sunday? I mean if that's okay with you."

The blonde female let out a sweet hum of approval. "Sure. Where?"

"The cafe maybe. I want to meet some other friends there too." He replied as he finally managed to log onto Powwow, unsurprised to see no new messages.

"Other friends?" The boy's words seemed to intrigue Kaede. "You mean Maki and Kaito, right?"

"Yeah. But I want someone else to come along too. I'll see if he's available." Shuichi returned. "Could you please ask our friends if they'd like to come whilst I deal with him?"

"Yup! No problem, Shuichi!" She cheerfully chirped and got straight to work, Shuichi doing the same. 

**YEET**

_Shuichiiii♡:_ Hey, Kokichi? _01:23_

 _PANTALORD42069247:_ hey detective  
_PANTALORD42069247:_ whadduya need? _01:30_

 _Shuichiiii♡:_ Are you available on Sunday, by any chance? _01:31_

 _PANTALORD42069247:_ ya why _01:31_

 _Shuichiiii♡:_ I've been thinking about the other day when we were at the amusement park and I wanted you to meet my friends. Plus, it'd be nice to see you again.  
_Shuichiiii♡:_ I was just curious to see if you were interested and free. We're meeting at the cafe. _01:33_

 _PANTALORD42069247:_ cool!!!  
_PANTALORD42069247:_ sounds like a plan _01:34_

 _Shuichiiii♡:_ Thank you. I'll figure out a time later and message you when it's been decided. _01:35_

 _PANTALORD42069247:_ alrighty then ! _01:36_

The detective smiled as he exited their messages and entered the _Sidekicks™_ group chat. He found that Kaito and Maki began slightly reluctant to show up however they very quickly warmed up to the idea of having a day out. They had established that they could do no earlier than 2pm because they were busy, which was decent enough, but he was excited for his friends to finally meet the amazing, generous, kind angel of a boy named Kokichi. He quickly notified Kokichi of the plan and turned back to Kaede who was watching him type.

"Who's that, Shuichi? Is that the other friend you were talking about?" The pianist enquired as she pointed to the screen.

He nodded and failed to keep the grin that spread across his lips from appearing. "Y-Yeah. That's Kokichi. We met at the cafe not too long ago because he wanted my phone number and then we somehow ended up hanging out and going to an amusement park together. It sounds really strange when I talk about it actually, haha. Anyway he wanted to meet you guys so why not? This is the perfect opportunity."

Kaede turned and looked straight ahead of her, replying with much less enthusiasm as before. "Oh? I'm really ecstatic that you're making friends. He sounds nice, Shuichi."

"Yeah. He is." Seemed to be the last of words exchanged between the two before the room fell into silence, excluding the movie still playing in the background to an uninterested audience.

The pianist stood up and strolled towards the door. "I'm tired. We should go to bed."

"Ah, yeah. You're right." The golden eyed boy replied, not understanding the reason behind the sudden change of atmosphere between them.

Kaede simply nodded and disappeared from sight, the sound of her climbing the stairs the only trace of her he had left. Shuichi turned off the TV and lights before following her upstairs and entering the guest room Kaede had prepared specifically for him.

As he climbed into bed the only thoughts circulating his head were those of peace and hope for the future. His heavy eyelids fluttered shut one final time before he drifted off to sleep with a smile upon his lips.

Both his and Kaede's nights had been terrible and dark secrets had been spilled, but this was only a poisonous taster of the lethality to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Sorry this took so long to come out. It was a mix of lack of motivation, writer's block and pretty much a mental health break but I'm hopefully going to thread myself back into the swing of things soon.
> 
> Also, if you would like to make some chapter art (for any of the chapters) that I could include in each, with credit, then I would really love that so much and be so grateful. 
> 
> I also have an Instagram account for posting about his story and updates so if you wanna know what's going on or how much progress I've made on a chapter or have any questions then go ahead and follow @//intranetbabe (or you can just lurk and check back every once in a while) 
> 
> This chapter may not seem like much, but it's the turning point in everything. It's the most important yet. 
> 
> Thank you all for your patience and thank you for reading!


	14. A Plan

The group of young children sat in a circle beneath the wooden treehouse that they'd built together during their last summer break. They had worked away for hours upon hours, watching it grow from the lower branches up into the sky. It was a simple design to those who, by chance, were to pass by it, but it climbed far up into the higher branches and had its own balconies and little rooms, as well as a slide and a nifty lifting mechanism with a small bucket at the end so they could easily bring snacks up with them. The treehouse was tucked away in the outskirts of town, hidden from view to stop intruders. The sun was at its highest and so were their spirits. 

"Do you think we can really pull this off?" One of the older boys asked with a worried look flourishing across his features, crossing his legs. He brushed his blond fringe over his eyes to shield them from the sun. 

"Sure, we can. With my intelligence we can do anything!" Another replied boisterously with a wide, proud grin. He brushed his brown fringe to either sides of his face and winked at the group's mauve haired friend. 

"You're too full of yourself sometimes. Not that that's a bad thing! But I think we can all do this together. Teamwork!" The girl smiled sweetly. "Don't you think so too, big bro?" 

"Mm. Nothing's impossible if we work together. It'll be hard, of course, and we'll only have one shot at getting this perfect, but we've all got a part to play in this. If everyone carries out theirs properly and efficiently, we'll have nothing to worry about." The rest of them looked up at the boy in awe before he continued. He gazed over at the boy who had devised this entire scheme, a hint of adoration in his eyes. "Thanks for the plan, dude. We can always count on you to get us where we want to be."

"Well, duh, stupid head! That's just what I do." Despite the insult, the two smiled at each other happily. That's just how strong their friendship was; it was unbreakable no matter what was said. "Anyway, I think we need to head home for now. We can pick up on this tomorrow and decide when we're finally gonna do it. Bye!" 

"See ya!" 

"Later!" 

They all exchanged goodbyes and went their separate ways. They'd meet up again at the same spot at the same time tomorrow. 

Tomorrow.

It was an important day for everyone. 

-

The purple haired boy stared aimlessly at the ceiling, lost in thought. Shade was fast asleep in the bunk below his own and the boss had grown irritated with his loud snores. The shorter of the two had considered whether he should suffocate his second-in-command with his pillow or not quite a few times, however the murder of such a high ranked member and dear friend would not go down well with his teammates. As a result, he had resorted to forcing himself to zone out in order to block out the obscene strangled noises emitting from the brunet's throat.

In his hand was his phone. He had been talking to the detective a few hours prior and, whilst not in the greatest of moods with the investigator, was slightly excited to hang out again. He had read their exchange of messages over and over again and each time he reached the end he would unknowingly smile bitterly.

Did he like the detective or did he hate him? He didn't know. Shuichi saved his life. But he ruined his life, too. If it wasn't for the detective, he would still be oblivious to his friends' betrayal. If it wasn't for the detective, he would be dead. Was Shuichi Saihara a hero or another source of heartbreak?

He couldn't get the boy out of his head and he didn't know why.

But it wasn't love. It would never be love. The detective was just as bad as DICE. The detective revealed a truth he didn't want to hear. He shattered the trust he had for his comrades- for Shade. The detective wasn't thinking about him or his wellbeing when he accused him of breaking into his home and threatening him - he was only thinking about his own safety. He didn't care about any thief, he only cared about his job. Shuichi wouldn't hesitate for a second to arrest him given he had the opportunity.

There was a fine line between criminal and detective, like two sides of the same coin, yet they were still worlds apart. It was a forbidden friendship. That was probably why he was so drawn to the shy sleuth; he would do anything for a fun time, especially since the whole of DICE had stopped messing around in order to focus on the project. DICE just wasn't the same without all of their petty crimes and vandalism. Being persued by Shuichi whilst simultaneously lounging right in front of his nose was much better than being serious about work.

He was a king and nobody could ever catch him. Not even Kyoko Kirigiri, the country's best detective, could catch him. The thief chuckled to himself quietly at how useless she had become. She solved her father's own murder as a teenager and could solve any crime presented to her, yet she couldn't stop one little thief? It truly was laughable. He wasn't surprised about Shuichi's ability, though. He'd never heard of him before, except maybe once or twice in the newspapers before he took on the Phantom Thief case. 

But that was all besides the point. The point was that Shuichi was trouble and DICE were even more so. The point was that eventually he had to pick a side. The point was, for some unfathomable reason, he was really looking forward to Sunday and he couldn't wait to learn more about the man.

"Tch. Stupid detective." He whispered as he closed his eyes.

He knew what he had to do, and he had a plan.

-  
"Minerva, I won't do anything. Just—" 

"No."

"Who is your boss? Tell me!"

"You know we can't and won't tell you. Just because we're working with you doesn't mean you're suddenly entitled to know everything there is about us."

"Listen, this is all really important to me, okay? If you just told me his name then we could get this over and done with quickly."

"I'm not going to let you hurt our boss. He may be an annoying brat but he's like family to all of us and we can't let you snitch on him. All you need to know is that he has no idea what's going on and that as soon as the project is finished we'll let you have what we promised."

"Of course I wouldn't tell! I'm a dedicated member of DICE and as a dedicated member of such a brilliant organisation, I feel like I have the right to know everything that's going on."

"The only right you have is to do what we ask. You do want what we promised, don't you?"

"Bringing that up is cruel..."

"Well?"

"I... Do. That's why I'm here. That's why... I need to know..."

An impatient sigh. "Hang up and go to sleep."

"One last thing before you go."

"What is it?"

"Never blackmail me like that ever again. Do you understand?"

"I understand, of course, but I won't make any promises."

"Bitch."

"I'm hanging up. Expect the line to go dead."

"The line won't be the only thing."

"Hm?"

"Nothing."

"Right. Bye."

-

Saturday had passed quickly and Sunday had finally arrived. The golden eyed detective had stayed an extra night at Kaede's and they were now on their way to meet up with Maki, Kaito and the new addition to the group, Kokichi, at the cafe.

The blonde pianist was unreasonably smiley and had quite the spring in her step as she walked down the stone pathway. She had been in such a good mood since that morning when they had woken up and not even burning herself with the oil in the frying pan, dropping and smashing her finest plates or tripping up the stairs had had an effect on her emotions in the slightest. She just kept smiling. It was unusual of her to be so clumsy, Shuichi had noted, but he supposed that today she just had very bad luck. It was just one of those days.

The pianist looked over her shoulder cheerfully at the navy haired boy. "It's such a bright afternoon. It's a nice day to get some fresh air and meet with friends, don't you think?" She beamed and inhaled the air deeply through her nose.

"Y-Yeah. Perfect." He replied, caught off guard from being ripped away from his thoughts.

The cafe was only around the corner now and Kaede's smile only grew. "I can't wait to meet this new friend of yours, Shuichi. I'd love to know more about him."

She was interested in learning about Kokichi? Kaede wanted to know about everyone, so he supposed it wasn't so weird. "Kokichi... Well, he's short and pale with purple hair. I don't know much about him at all but he said he runs an online business."

"Oh? That's interesting, what kind of business?" She chirped inquisitively. 

Shuichi shrugged slightly as he bit his lower lip. "He said it was a prank business, I don't know much more than that. He does seem the type to run something like that though." 

Kaede nodded slowly to herself before her face lit up once more. "Ohh, so he's that type of guy, huh?"

"Uh... Yeah?" Shuichi had no idea what she meant, but he'd learned to just go with it.

"What else do you know about him, Shuichi?" Kaede sang, skipping ahead once again.

Shuichi thought for a moment. What did he know about Kokichi? "Um... I don't know him all too well yet but I know he's an orphan. Ah, but that's a bit depressing and I assume it's pretty personal so we should avoid talking about that. He's scared of thunder, and he hates pig feet but he claims to hate liars more than anything else in the world despite being quite the liar himself. Oh! How could I forget? He loves panta - grape panta specifically. I'd be surprised if he ever drank anything besides it."

"Sounds like you know a lot already." His companion chimed in with a knowing smile.

"Hm?" Shuichi voice was accented with a hint of surprise as they approached the familiar building. "I guess I do, in a way."

"I can't wait to meet him!" Kaede sang, clasping her hands together excitedly before pushing the doors open and peering into the room. "Ah look, Kaito and Maki are already here."

In the corner of the room in their usual spot, the couple were sitting side by side with white mugs on the table in front of them. Maki had seen them come in, but as soon as she had spotted them her eyes shot quickly from the direction of the door down to the contents of her cup.

Kaito simply smiled and waved at them, calling them over. "Hey sidekick! Kaede! We've been waiting for you guys."

"It's so nice to see you two again!" Kaede beamed kindly as she and her childhood friend sat opposite them. "I was worried in case you both wouldn't show up, I'm glad you could make it."

Maki looked up, her eyes darkened. "Of course we'd show up. We made a promise, didn't we, Kaito?" She nudged him under the table with her elbow gently to get his attention.

It took him a moment to jog his memory but he eventually realised what she was talking about and replied with a proud smile. "Yep! Can't abandon our best bud!"

"That's so sweet." The pianist turned swiftly to Shuichi. "Do you know when your friend is gonna get here?"

"U-Uh... He shouldn't take too long to get here." He said, although he was worried in case the trickster bailed on him and didn't come at all. It wouldn't be a huge problem (despite the fact that this entire meet-up was based solely around the boy); he'd have Kaito, Maki and Kaede, but still, he wanted to see Kokichi most of all.

As if on cue the doors swung open and in walked the short purple haired boy dressed in his usual eccentric white attire. He stopped as he entered, searching for the correct table, and once he saw the detective he sauntered over with a spring in his step. Kokichi placed his hands on the taller boy's shoulders and peered his head over them to look at him. "Hey, Shuichi! Did ya miss me?"

Shuichi tensed up at the action. "U-Um, sure? Why don't you come sit down with us? I'll introduce you guys."

"Okie dokie!" The amethyst eyed boy warbled enthusiastically as he released Shuichi from his grip and proceeded to squeeze in-between Kaede and the detective. 

Kaede shuffled uncomfortably over, stifling a cheery smile. "Hi! I'm Kaede. I've heard quite a bit about you. It's such a pleasure to finally meet you! I hope we end up being good friends." 

"Nishishi," Kokichi chuckled, "The pleasure is all yours." He wove his fingers together behind his head and looked across the table at the two others. "What about you, devil eyes? Wanna introduce yourself?" 

Maki's face grew dark and threatening as she stood up and leant over the table, looming over the small boy. Reflexively, Kaito pulled her back into her seat at rocket speed and wrapped his arm around her waist to keep her from getting up again. 

He piped up before his girlfriend could say or do anything she would regret, as unlikely as that was though. "My name is Kaito Momota, Luminary of the Stars! And this beauty beside me is my wonderful girlfriend Maki."

The brunette rolled her eyes with a huff. "I can introduce myself, Kaito." Though evidently not amused at either boys, she didn't shove Kaito off of her. 

"Heh, yeah, I know." Her boyfriend responded with a chuckle. "I just got a bit enthusiastic to meet Shuichi's new friend."

Kokichi only grinned gleefully, opposed to responding with whatever smug comment he was plotting to spit out. Shuichi smiled uncomfortably, not expecting any conflict between his company. "Uh, so I'm gonna go and get drinks or something... Y-Yeah." He stood up hesitantly and slipped out from behind the table. "Kokichi."

Kokichi turned his body to look at him. "Yes, my favourite detective? How may I be of assistance?" He shot a small smug glance across the table at Kaito and Maki in a sly attempt to get a rise out of them.

"Come with me, I'll need some help carrying things. And I'll let you order whatever you'd like. It's on me." Shuichi asked as Kokichi happily hopped up and skipped over to the counter. When Kokichi's back was turned Shuichi apologetically signalled to Maki to calm down, having gotten the troublemaker out of the way for a moment.

"In that case I'm getting panta then!" He cheered as he drummed his hands in a syncopated rhythm on the counter in front of a certain pointy nosed employee. Shuichi joined him by his side and smiled at the familiar barista before making his order.

Meanwhile at the table, Maki was still shooting daggers into the back of Kokichi's head. "I'm not sure I like Kokichi that much. Or at all. Brat."

The boy beside her nodded in agreement. "I think Maki's right - he seems like nothing but trouble."

Kaede frowned half heartedly. "Come on now, guys. Give him a chance! He could turn out to be really nice. I'm sure he was just trying to joke around with you guys."

"No," Kaito swallowed in a condescending tone. "I can already tell he's an asshole."

Kaede pouted. "Hey now... From what I've heard about him from Shuichi he seems like a good guy. Maybe he's just not good at making friends? Let's try to make him feel welcome!"

Maki only looked to the side and bit her lip to stop herself from making any nasty remarks, letting Kaito decide what to do. "Yeah well... I suppose you could be right. I mean, Shuichi wouldn't have wanted us to meet up if he didn't think we'd get along. If our best pal thinks that Kokichi is alright then I guess we should give him a shot."

The pianist clasped her hands together happily. "There's the spirit! I knew you would believe in Shuichi!"

Shuichi looked at the tray of beverages on the counter, accompanied by the selection of sweet treats that sat beside them that he had certainly not ordered. Kokichi bounced on his toes with a bright grin on his face, staring up at the clerk.

"Are you sure we need all this Kokichi?" The detective questioned, raising an uneasy eyebrow. He could already tell his wallet would be crying after this.

Kokichi didn't turn to look at him, instead continuing to stare at the scowling barista. "Yup. I have quite the sweet tooth, and I'm sure your lovely friends would appreciate it a lot."

Shuichi pressed his lips together into a thin line as he thought about it, unsure that he wanted to spend so much money on something that he didn't have to. The apparent staring contest continued between the other two boys as the man behind the counter spoke sternly. "I'll let you have the cakes for half the price if you hurry making your mind up. Get your creepy friend away from me."

The 'creepy friend' giggled. "Seems like a good deal. Whaddya say, Shuichi?"

"Fine." He sighed. "But only because today's supposed to be a good day."

Shuichi paid the friendly employee and picked the tray up, wobbling unsteadily from the weight. Kokichi only chuckled as he skipped back over to his seat, bottle of panta in hand, before Kaede ran over quickly.

"You want me to carry that for you, Shuichi? I don't mind." She chirped as she placed her hands underneath the tray delicately.

He froze, watching the surfaces of the hot liquid ripple. "A-Ah, it's okay. I've got this."

"You sure?" Kaede chuckled as she helped hold the silver tray. "You hold that side and I'll hold this side."

Shuichi didn't refuse the offer this time, thanking Kaede for her help as they carried the edibles back to the table. They slowly lowered it onto the centre of the table as Kokichi greedily snatched a cupcake topped with a mountain of buttercream icing. The couple across the table screwed their faces up distastefully at the action but didn't say anything as Kaede and Shuichi returned to their seats either side of the boy. 

Kaito had already placed Kokichi in his bad books, and if the boy continued to act up he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon. Nevertheless, he still wanted Shuichi to be happy so he reached out to take a single slither of dark chocolate coated cake and forced a smile. "Hey, so uh. How did you two meet?"

Kokichi immediately swallowed a large mouthful of his own cake, partially unchewed, and whilst holding back chokes answered gleefully. "Fate of course! We met right here in this cafe, believe it or not. We were destined to meet, isn't that right Shuichi?" He shuffled closer to the other boy and nudged him with his elbow playfully, all while shoving another piece of cake into his mouth.

Shuichi shifted his gaze to the side, almost flattered by Kokichi's claim. "Haha, yeah, I guess so."

Kaede chuckled lightly as she leant backwards to shoot Shuichi a look behind Kokichi's back. Shuichi simply bore the same confused expression and shrugged, though a hint of embarrassment was present hence the soft pink tint dusted almost invisibly on his cheeks.

She sat forwards again and looked at Kokichi. "Tell us about yourself, we'd love to learn more about you."

"Would we?" Maki muttered under her breath as she turned her head away by a fraction and pretended to sip from her empty class. 

Kaito almost laughed at her small remark, choosing to play along with Kaede and try to keep Shuichi happy, no matter how he really felt about the boy. 

"Yes, we would." Kaede retorted calmly, surprised that Kokichi simply smiled contently rather than responding. He wasn't causing trouble, though, so it wasn't that much of a problem for the time being. He couldn't be that bad if he wasn't retaliating, and that was a relief to her. 

Kokichi took another bite out of his snack and, whilst chewing obnoxiously loudly, decided this would be an appropriate time to speak. "Whaddya wanna know about me? There's so much to learn." He drew out the 'so' with a childish smile, one of those smiles where it was evident that there was evil intent behind it. 

Kaede swallowed as she searched for words. "What about—"

"Do you have a girlfriend or any other friends or something?"

Everyone looked up at the aspiring astronaut. 

Kokichi pouted. "Hm? Why?" 

"Because you're the most annoying brat I have ever met in my life. Go annoy your other friends instead, if you even have any. The hell's wrong with you?" Kaito spat. 

"Why ask if I have a girlfriend? You scared I'm gonna steal your girl?" He giggled mockingly. "Don't worry, space nerd, 'angry wench' really isn't my type."

Shuichi sharply inhaled and pointed his eyes the other direction and, biting his lip, sipped his tea. This was a mess. Why couldn't his friends behave? And in public, too. This was embarrassing and it was a struggle to refrain himself from slamming his head into his hands. 

"Space nerd?" Kaito exclaimed, taut. 

Maki's face darkened as her hands pounded against the table. "Why you little—" 

"OKAY." Kaede must've felt the same as she slowly stood up. "I don't mean to interrupt but I'm just going outside for a minute. I think I need a breather..." She mumbled as she slid out from behind the table and began walking towards the door. 

The whole argument had been momentarily forgotten as the remaining four silently watched her leave. As soon as the doors closed behind her she seemed to hunch over, shaking, clutching her stomach.

"Is she alright?" Shuichi asked, though he knew it was a question none of them could answer. "She looks like she's gonna be sick."

The dictator piped up cheerfully. "I'll go and check on her!"

"No," Kaito interrupted, "you won't. If anyone's gonna check on her it's gotta be Shuichi."

"Me?" The detective sheepishly smiled. "Ah, i-it's really no big deal. Let Kokichi go."

Kokichi smiled and hugged Shuichi's arm tightly. "Yay! See, Shuichi's so nice! Unlike some people." He delivered a vicious sneer of a glare before releasing the boy from his grip and skipping towards the pianist outside.

As soon as Kokichi was out of earshot Kaito leant forwards. "Are you really friends with this kid?"

"Well yeah... But he's acting really weird." He stared into his half empty cup dejectedly. "He's so out of character. I just don't understand."

The astronaut scoffed. "Something must be seriously wrong because you're definitely not the type of person to be drawn to people like him." When Shuichi simply offered a nod as a response he continued. "Do you think something happened to make him act like this? Or is he naturally just a dick?"

He shook his head and shrugged apologetically. "I don't know. I'm really sorry about him."

Meanwhile, Kokichi pushed the door open quietly and poked his head out, hearing something which mos  certainly surprised him. Now this was interesting. As soon as he had been noticed, Kaede let out a quiet groan and a single tear slipped down her face. 

He feigned a frown. "Woah, are you okay? You look totally pale!"

She hesitantly stood up properly, still gripping tightly onto the fabric of her jumper which covered her stomach. "Oh? I do? I feel a little bit sick but I'll be fine. Thanks for worrying, though."

He reached out to place a comforting hand on her forearm. "Aww poor little Kaede is sick... Looks like you're coming down with something serious... Or perhaps..." He cracked a grin.

"Perhaps?"

"You're already sick."

-

Shade, sitting at his desk in his and his boss' bedroom, opened his drawer and, checking through his notes a final time, put them inside and pushed them to the very back. He dropped the photographs his boss had taken on their second heist in there too. 

He had found them hidden beneath the leader's pillow whilst gathering bedsheets and duvets to wash earlier that day, a job which he instructed Smile to do, and he was far from impressed. The detective shouldn't have even been able to get that close to the thief, so why was he wasting time playing with him when he had a job to do? Furious was nowhere near an appropriate word to describe how he felt, yet he wouldn't voice it. He would let the leader find out that his failures had been discovered by himself, and then he would let him panic.

It wasn't his fault his boss was so useless. He didn't understand his fascination with the detective. He was nothing special. He couldn't wait to finally crush him when the project was completed. He'd be one of their first targets and he'd use him in order to take complete control. All in a matter of time.

The phone on the corner of his desk began to ring and Shade knew exactly who it would be. He had been getting calls from Ego frequently now that he had been assigned to keep a close eye on the nuisance of an obstacle detective. He sighed and picked up the phone. "Hello, Ego."

"Hm? You could tell it was me before I even spoke? Hah, I really am that amazing, aren't I?" The man on the other end boasted.

Shade hated talking to Ego sometimes. He could be quite unbearable, especially with his arrogance. "Quit the narcissism for five minutes, will you? I'm quite confident that you're calling me about the detective. Is he at the cafe?"

"Right again. I'm impressed." He hummed. "But it's not just him."

"The boss, too, I know. He was gone by the time I woke up this morning. Most likely off to meet with him."

"What's he doing with the detective? Did you approve of this?" Ego snapped. "You know, if you're going to just let him do whatever he wants you're clearly not fit for your role. I could do a much better job as leader."

A smirk. "If you claim to be that skilled and experienced, please, make yourself useful for once and find a solution to our problem. Maybe then you'd finally move up from rank ten. Even Pigtails is higher up than you and her role is useless." A pause, just to let his words sink in. "And don't forget - I'm not the leader of DICE. I'm simply second-in-command and I'm so high up in the organisation for a reason. However, as much as I'd love to argue with you just like old times, we have a matter to discuss."

Ego wanted to argue back but Shade was right; they had no time for this. He huffed and changed the subject back to the original topic. "It's not just the boss there. There's five of them, Shade."

He shot forwards in his chair, eyebrows furrowed. "Five? Oh, yes. That's fine." Shade sat back nonchalantly. "I can guess who all of them are anyway."

"Why did you sound so worried for just a second there?" Ego asked. Shade rarely ever spoke with such expression. He was flat and cold and showed little emotion, but this got a rise out of him, even if it was momentary. "And more importantly, why are the detective's friends with him? I thought we were going to isolate him."

"I simply remembered that this is fine. There's nothing to worry about."

"Please expand on that."

"Gladly." Shade smiled, eyes closed. Knowledge is power. It felt good to be in control. "We're still going forth with the scheme to isolate him, but this is an exception. Change of plan, it seems. Not my decision. It was Mystikó's idea."

"Why are you bending backwards for Mystikó? Just ditch the anchor because we were clearly doing much better before without—"

"I don't want to hear it Ego. If you're not going to discuss what you called for then just hang up." The higher ranking member yawned, ready to put the phone down. He didn't have time to be wasting on this idiot. He had duties to attend to, like making sure Boomer and Gadget were working hard instead of playing with their tools as they were often caught doing. 

"Alright. Hold on." For a minute, nothing could be heard besides faint movements and ruffling of clothes. "I'm back. The boss really seems to be tearing their friendship group apart. Highly expected of him however. Was this part of Mystikó's plan too?"

"No. Mystikó doesn't know anything about us. Mystikó only knows what part to play in this." Shade screwed his face up. "The boss probably wants to get closer to the detective. Don't let that happen."

"Understood." 

The line went dead. Shade put his phone down, locked his drawer and swiftly left the room.

Mystikó's plan, huh? An interesting tribute.

Interesting, undoubtedly so, yet impractical. He could work with this.

He chuckled. "Thank you very much, Mystikó."

-

The employee left the backroom and sauntered towards the counter where he picked up some glasses which had been idly left there and began to clean them. He peered up at the group of adults and rolled his eyes at the sight of Kokichi leaning on the table, resting his head on his hands whist sipping panta from a straw. The sight annoyed him greatly, but nevertheless he decided to listen in to their conversation. 

"Oh? So you're an astronaut? That's surprising. I wouldn't have ever expected that." He yawned, admiring his nails which were way more interesting than this fool.

Though Kaito wanted to break the boy's jaw, he and Maki had decided, for Kaede's sake, to tolerate Kokichi. "Trainee astronaut, actually." Kaito corrected. "But what the hell is that supposed to mean?" 

Kokichi ignored his question and continued speaking, his attack on Kaito clearly unfinished. "But then again you didn't have to bother telling me, I already knew. Shuichi told me some time ago."

He thought Kokichi had shown genuine interest in him, but apparently he was wrong. It annoyed him. "If you already knew then why did you ask? You little shit!" 

The imp grinned, his smile stretching from ear to ear in a way which seemed unnatural. He opened his mouth to spit out a snarky response but Kaede managed to speak before he could release the fuelled words. "So, it's already late in the afternoon, maybe we should all leave soon?" 

"Y-Yeah, good idea." Shuichi chuckled. He felt like he really hadn't said much at all for the entire time they were together; it had mainly been Kokichi terrorising his friends and acting far worse than strange. It was peculiar and unexpected, were these his true colours showing or was there a problem? He couldn't tell. "Everything's been paid for so there's no need to hang around."

"Then it's settled." She beamed, finishing the glass of water Maki had ordered for her. When she and Kokichi had entered the cafe once again Kokichi looked as bright as energetic as ever, whilst Kaede wobbled in looking... Pale, unnervingly pale and unsettled as if she had experienced something truly horrible. She didn't say anything about the matter, and neither did Kokichi, besides that she felt a little under the weather. 

Kaito and his girlfriend stood up. "Well if that's the case then we'll be off." He looked to Shuichi, a small grin on his face, almost sad looking. "It's been great to see you today, sidekick. Thanks for inviting us out. It was good to see you too, Kaede. And your, uh, friend." 

Kaede giggled cheerfully. "I'm glad to have seen you both too! It's been such a long time since the four of us spent some time together. No offence, Kokichi." 

"Hm?" He was too busy reading the ingredients on the back of his panta bottle to pay attention to what was being said. "Yeah, whatever."

"See you around." Maki said as she and her boyfriend made their way towards the exit, hand in hand.

And then there were three.

"We should get going soon too, Shuichi." The pianist recited as she collected up the empty glasses and plates on the tray, ready to return them to the counter.

"R-Right." Shuichi said as he hurriedly helped her tidy up. He didn't want to be with Kokichi for the minute. Not after how he had been acting. 

Kokichi simply sat and slurped noisily from his straw, kicking his legs beneath the table. He felt like a king being cleaned up after, especially as most of the mess was his. Though, he was sad Shuichi opted to leave him rather than stay beside him for the moment. 

When the two returned to the table Kaede said goodbye to the imp, but as they turned to leave Kokichi leapt up from his seat and ran past them out through the doors. Another strange, unexplainable action. 

Shuichi sighed and walked faster towards the door. "Sorry Kaede, I just remembered I needed to... Speak with him for a sec. You go ahead without me and I'll catch up."

She frowned. "You sure? I don't wanna leave you alone."

"It's no problem, really. I need to catch him before he's out of sight." And with that, he burst through the doors and ran after the boy who was happily walking away at an oddly slow pace. "Kokichi! Wait!"

The boy stopped and spun on his heels. "Shuichi? You seem pretty desperate to talk to me. How can I help you?"

He caught up to Kokichi, out of breath and begging for oxygen to refill his lungs. "I need to talk to you."

Kokichi smiled sweetly. "About what?"

"Today."

The shorter boy's smile faded and he rolled his eyes. "Listen, yeah I kinda feel bad for saying all that to your friends. I'm sure they're good people or whatever but... Y'know how it is..." The last parts were a mumble accompanied with broken eye contact as he looked away in a sarcastic manner.

"I know how it is?" The detective's voice was flat, emotionless with confrontation. "I really don't."

Kokichi winced, but his plan was going accordingly. "Listen, my favourite detective in the world, I promise I can make it up to you."

"How so?"

"Just give me a chance. We can go out somewhere, just you and me. It'll be fun. It's my way of atoning for sins of stepping out of line." He nudged Shuichi's arm with his elbow for the second time that day and flashed him an unreadable grin. "What do you say?"

Shuichi contemplated rejecting the offer, but he felt Kokichi's attempt at an apology was sincere enough. He was acting strange, after all, so maybe there was a reason, and he aimed to get to the bottom of it. "Okay. When are you next free?"

"I wanna do it tomorrow." Kokichi chirped, lacing his fingers behind his head. "I'll text you the details."

"Tomorrow? That's fine, I guess." The other hummed. "I'd better go catch up with Kaede, see you tomorrow."

Kokichi watched Shuichi run after her, yelling her name to see if she was still in earshot. "Goodbye, my beloved detective." He smiled to himself.

Mission accomplished.

-

"Why did they let us go?" She asked. "It doesn't make sense."

He turned the wheel. "They must've wanted us to see him today. Maybe like a final goodbye... Or something like that."

"Don't say that, Kaito! It makes it sound like Shuichi is gonna die."

"Or us."

"Kaito! That's not gonna happen. We're gonna make sure of it. I already promised you I'd help you save him."

"I know, it's just a little dark humour, babe. We're gonna save him, don't worry."

"Dark humour is unlike you." She paused with a silent sigh. "Then can I make a suggestion?"

"What kind?"

"An idea. To help us."

"O-Oh, yeah of course. Anything for you, Maki Roll."

"Give me your phone."

"What? I'm not cheating on you if that's what you're worried about."

"Take this seriously, Kaito. The only thing you're gonna be saying goodbye to is the damn electronic so you'd better slam your foot down on that accelerator when I give you the cue."

She rolled down the window.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're being tracked. They're listening to us. They've got everything of ours bugged."

"I get it. Here, take it."

"I'm sorry about this, Kaito, but it's got to be done." She removed the batteries from the backs of the phones, as well as the memory chips. Those would be destroyed later. 

"Ready?"

"Ready."

She reached out of the window with a determined glare cementing her face in concentration, feeling the wind rip her arm backwards as Kaito accelerated faster down the long street. She raised her arm and within an instant she forced it back down, releasing the two phones in her hand and sending them shattering on the ground.

It was a risk, they knew, but it was one they had to take. It was for their baby. It was for Shuichi Saihara. It was for Kyoko Kirigiri. It was for them.

For the sake of the lives of many, this was something they had to do. Kaito and Maki were going to do everything in their power to save them. 

However, this wasn't their story to be the heroes of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been so long omg I've kinda forgotten how to use this site.
> 
> Sorry for the short chapter! I wrote about everything I needed to at this stage so I hope this is enough to keep you all going until I finish school/exams are over (possibly until June) which I'm incredibly sorry for. However, there are some very important parts in this chapter which I hope you all can pick up on.
> 
> If you're not already, follow my ig account @intranetbabe (solely dedicated to posting updates on Deceit) because I've been posting hints and clues for future chapters, so make sure to check it out. Who knows if it'll help advance your theories?
> 
> Until next time!!


	15. Make It A Date

As Shuichi caught up with his companion his legs almost gave up on him, sending him doubling over as he tried to regain his breath. He certainly was not fit, and definitely not athletic in the slightest. "Finally... I didn't think I'd catch you..." he huffed.

She stopped walking, having noticed Shuichi had too. "So what was all that about? What happened?"

"Ah, nothing really. I just needed to talk to him about something." he recounted, lifting his head to partially meet her gaze. "He wasn't acting right so I decided to confront him about it."

Kaede nodded almost apprehensively. "Well I guess that makes sense! He did seem to be acting up a little so there must've been something wrong. I hope it's all sorted now." she spoke slowly, almost as if she was trying to process it, not that there was much to process.

He gave her a small reassuring smile, thinking about Kokichi's offer as he stood back up, air in his lungs replenished, and walked to her side. "You could say that, " he murmured, "I think I'll be able to get to the bottom of his behaviour tomorrow. As for now... Let's go."

The duo began to walk back to Kaede's house where they had planned to spend the rest of the afternoon, or rather what was left of it as the afternoon gave way to the evening and the sleepy sun had begun to set.

Kaede poked his arm lightly. She wanted to break the unexplainable silence they were sharing. "Hey, Shuichi. You could sleep over again if you wanted."

Shuichi could tell by her tone that she was more asking him to sleep over again than tell him that she would be available to host a sleepover that night if he wished, but in all honesty he just wanted to go home and get some quality rest. The third heist had been a stressful night; a lot had happened and the whole event made his blood boil. 

The thief denied ever threatening him, almost got him attacked by a psychotic serial killer and to top it off he threatened to take Kaede's life in front of a crowd of terrified civilians. And he still hadn't caught the damn man because he traded his prison sentence for Toko Fukawa's, stating that murder is a worse crime than theft. The whole evening was a lot to handle and whilst Kaede was an incredible woman who never failed to cheer him up, last night had been chaotic too. He figured he should give her some space - he needed some too.

"Ah, no, that's quite alright Kaede." he started, looking the opposite direction. "I don't want to be a bother, and I think I need some alone time tonight. I'm pretty stressed and tired and need to take care of myself."

Her face fell, but she tried to be understanding. "I... I see. That's no problem, then! In that case, I'll go see my parents. No big deal!"

"I'm really sorry, but I'm so glad you understand." he beamed to himself. "I guess that's why you're my closest friend. You're always there for me, I really appreciate it."

The pianist's face lit up, an evident blush blossoming across her cheeks. "Closest friend? You're the best friend I could ever ask for, Shuichi. I'm glad I have you. Thanks for spending time with me. And I don't mean just today, I mean all those other times too. It means the world that you think about me..." her voice was quiet, almost a mumbled whisper induced by sobs of joy due to their sentimental exchange, but she held the tears back.

A picturesque view enhanced this image of tender-hearted affection, slender trees lining the sides of the pavements in front of dark green fences and little purple and white flowers which peeked up from in between the edges of the sidewalk and the bushy brambles which crawled onto the concrete. The breeze was calm, only a single gentle gust of wind invisibly ushered them forwards. The sky was a soft shade of caramel orange which melted into a balmy, benign pink which seemed to thaw into a variety of violets and blues; the scene was almost that of a watercolour painting as the colours dissolved into one another so peacefully, so beautifully.

And the two were standing quietly in the middle of it all, upon a small arched brick bridge.

"Yeah. You're like family to me, Kaede."

"You're like family to me too." she smiled.

Their eyes didn't meet: they were simply looking in one spot either in front of them or at their feet, but as if the wind was guiding their hands, their fingers brushed together and the two gently laced their fingers together.

They stood like this for a minute, both feeling as if they could stay like this forever. It was reassuring to both of them that they would always have each other, a good friend who had their back. It felt as if time had stopped moving and for the moment, that didn't seem like a problem at all. Shuichi didn't think he'd mind if he had to stay holding Kaede's hand like this for a while longer. He was completely undeserving of her, so far out of his league, so all he could do was enjoy the seconds where he could feel her heartbeat in her fingertips, intertwined with his own.

He shifted his gaze to her face, noting how she looked like she had something to say. She closed her eyes tightly and let out a long, silent exhale underneath her breath, then attempted to vocalise her thoughts. "Shuichi, I..."

But they had better get moving. He couldn't let it get too late before Kaede got to her parents' house. Even though they only lived a couple blocks over, going home in the dark alone was something Shuichi would never allow her to do. "U-Um, we should probably go now if you want to see your parents today." he stuttered, however not retrieving his hand.

Kaede was the one to snatch her hand away quickly as she slipped ahead of him, a spring in her step. "Yeah! That's right. Sorry for holding you up!" she called as she picked up the pace by a fraction. 

Shuichi blinked but shook it off. That was probably embarrassing for her so he'd understand why she'd run away. Plus, it was _him_ , too. He hurried to catch up; Kaede's street was right around the next corner. 

Then he suddenly remembered about Kaede feeling sick at the cafe, how Kokichi followed her out and looked cheerful as ever coming back inside. Kaede had asked him about what he and Kokichi spoke about, so he thought he'd do the same even though he likely went to just check up on her. He cleared his throat before he spoke. "Kaede, do you still feel sick from earlier?"

She pulled an expression that read 'somewhat' and sighed. "A little bit, but I'll be fine. It's a stomachache." She finished her turn to speak quickly, but Shuichi paid no mind and got to the point.

"And you know how Kokichi followed you outside, right?" Kaede looked at him as he finished, "What did he say to you?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. He asked if I was alright, that's it." 

She remembered what she didn't want to. She didn't like Kokichi that much after that event and the sneer and snarl in his voice bit at her conscience. It was disturbing how quickly he could change at absolutely nothing and just recalling their conversation made the colour drain from her face. 

Shuichi studied her blank expression. Did Kokichi do something? "You look pretty pale talking about him."

"I feel sick." she replied stoically with a robot-like tone, almost void of emotion.

Something must've happened, Shuichi concluded, but if she wasn't going to open up to him about it after the moment they had just shared then he wouldn't press her. Last night was a lot to handle and he couldn't have her breaking down again; seeing her cry was the most heart-wrenching experience of his life. "Let's get you home then, okay? Come on." he offered a friendly smile before continuing down the final street to their destination.

Once Kaede reached her house, she practically shoved the key into the lock, unlocked it and flung the orange door open with a grin. "Feels good to be back!" the pianist exclaimed, her demeanour much brighter than before. Kaede wasn't one to let things keep her feeling down for long - she was incredibly positive, something many of her friends admired her for.

"Yeah, home sweet home." Shuichi followed her inside and went to grab his belongings off the couch which he had left there that morning.

Whilst he hadn't brought anything with him due to the unexpected night spent over besides his house keys, which he had left behind before going out, Kaede had given him one of her new mugs she had gotten made recently, one that showed an image of the two as children once the inside was heated up. Kaede claimed to have found the picture whilst sorting through some of her still-boxed belongings and she thought he might've liked to have the second mug in the set. She had boxed it up for him and given it to him as a surprise that morning before breakfast and Shuichi was more than happy to have received such a nostalgic gift. He wasn't typically one to happily accept presents, however, but seeing as Kaede had been so kind he didn't think it would hurt. 

"Oh, Shuichi, before you leave," she entered the room and placed her hand on the book on her coffee table, "thanks so much for this again. I'm so happy. You're the best!"

Shuichi adjusted his hat and tucked his hair behind his ear. "It's no problem, there's really no need to thank me. If it weren't for you a serial killer would still be on the loose, you're the hero."

If it weren't for Kaede then the thief would be dead. That man, who deserved nothing more than to die, would have died. Nonetheless, it was more important that nobody had been seriously harmed.

"Happy to help!" she chuckled as she slipped a key out of her pocket and placed it into Shuichi's hand. "Here, what's mine is yours."

He stared at the key, confused. "What's this for?" 

"It's my house key. A spare, don't worry." she beamed, stepping backwards unnoticeably so he couldn't return it. She was serious. "You're welcome to come over whenever you'd like. Need some place to rest or wanna escape from your job for a little while? My door is always open, quite literally with that key. Just make sure you let me know you're heading over first because if you just showed up out of nowhere it'd give me quite the fright."

He wanted to protest but he appreciated how much she trusted him. "Alright, thanks... Do you want my key too or?"

She waved her hands in front of her. "No, no, it's fine. This is just my special way of thanking you. You've already given me so much."

The detective smiled. Kaede was so generous. "If you say so, but thank you. I'd better be off now if you wanna see your parents."

"Ah, okay, good call. I'll see you soon then?" she walked him to the door and opened it. 

"Yeah, later Kaede!" he called as he left, gifts in tow, headed towards home. He hoped Kokichi would get in touch soon. 

-

The heavy door swung open and the captive's eyes flew wide as the clang shook the entire room. She knew it wasn't her from her footsteps and the way she walked; she had memorised that already. No, this was someone she hadn't seen before. How many of them were there in this place? She, whilst sensing someone approaching from down the corridor, had expected to see the colour of contrast between her captor's clothes and the dull metal plates, but all that she was met with was a girl in a monotonous black and white with her hair in bunches. She shut her eyes and pretended to sleep. 

Pigtails walked up in front of her, a silver tray in her hands, and leaned forwards to stare into her face. She stayed still for a moment, hovering a hand in front of her mouth and nose to check if she was still breathing and once she confirmed that, yes, she was, she began to make damn sure she was awake too. 

"Wake up!" she bellowed, increasing her volume and pitch a whole octave as she held onto the words for as long as her lungs would allow.

Her scream was a high shriek of an alarm clock which forced the girl into jumping out of her own skin and screwing her face up in fright and giving in to what the terror wanted. She hadn't seen this girl before, so she might as well see what she needed. It was likely more torture, however recently they'd given her a break, only visiting her to feed her every afternoon. It was always the same bread and water, not even buttered. She of course was bound and so she had to be fed which no one wanted to do. But, they couldn't let her starve because she'd die. They weren't great people, but they were not murderers. 

When she opened her eyes and gave a slow, uninterested blink, Pigtails simply brushed it off and smiled. "Hi! You must be our little prisoner, nice to meet you!" no reply, just a silent glare which said everything it needed to. "C'mon, don't be like that! I'm being nice, treat people how you wanna be treated. If you don't cooperate then my brother will be mad."

She shrugged the best she could, struggling from the numbness in her limbs and the rope binding her wrists to the electric chair. "What do you want then?" she looked down and acknowledged the familiar platter in her hands, though today the food was hidden by a metallic cover. Usually she would see the single slice of stale bread beside half a glass of water, it wasn't much but it kept her going and she was grateful they weren't planning on killing her by starvation. 

"I brought food! I thought you might be hungry," she lifted the cover, "and I mean _super_ hungry, so I asked my good friend to make a special treat for our special guest." 

The hostage's eyes widened at the sight as they studied the tray in awe, eyes following the curves of the neatly sliced fruits ranging from mangoes to peaches, diced pineapples to neatly chopped bananas, and to top it off, a large vanilla milkshake with lots of cream. Her mouth dropped open, drool escaping down her chin. She was taken aback, unable to speak. 

Pigtails tilted her head to the side. "You're not saying anything... Don't you like it?" 

She snapped out of her daze of an admiration, almost fantasising about being able to eat better quality food. "I don't know what to say. I appreciate it. Thank you." she mumbled her gratitude and though she wanted to divert her eyes away from her, her vision was glued to the goods. Though there was something that bugged her. "What's the occasion?"

"Nothing, nothing. It's just from the kindness in my heart, I mean bread and water is pretty dull so why not? You wanna eat already, huh?" the other girl nodded in response, even though it was difficult due to the metal choker strapping her neck to the chair. Pigtails smiled as she skewered a piece of fruit with the fork, "Open wide!" 

The girl felt as if she would be able to survive a little longer, though this odd treatment surely symbolised something, but she couldn't tell what it was.

Perhaps it was the end. 

-

Kokichi leaned against a lamppost near the outskirts of town. The sun was setting, he acknowledged, but he didn't feel like going home just yet. He was particularly enjoying the serenity of the scenery around him. It was peaceful, with little people around and only a few cars occasionally whizzing past.

He plucked his phone from his pocket and opened Powwow. He did promise the detective a good time, and he told him that he'd message him the details, so he supposed he'd better come up with something before he forgot and screwed up this perfect opportunity to spend time with him.

Unfortunately, he could never spend time with him as the real Kokichi. No, this was all just an act to put him under his spell and be able to easily manipulate him, yet somehow he held an ounce of sympathy for him now. He didn't like it, but he'd deal with it until he was able to flick the reset button on his emotions as usual. It wasn't a big deal.

He scrolled through his messages, having received hundreds from Pigtails and Boomer asking where he was because Shade was mad, although he ignored them and marked them all as read. What he wanted to find were his messages with Shuichi. And, with a brilliantly sinister grin, he did.

**YEET**

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Wus poppin B)  _19:56_

And now he just had to wait. 

_Shuichiiii♡_ : ...Wus poppin? Haha, nothing much.  _20:03_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : So you finally reply! Greaatttt!  
Sooo  
I believe you said earlier on you were gonna text me something super important! Spill the tea.  _20:04_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Kokichi, I have no idea what on Earth you are talking about. Aren't you the one who said you were gonna message me?  _20:04_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Aw mannnn, you got me! I was just kidding :D  
Anywayyy I was gonna tell you my plans for tomorrow!  _20:05_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Please follow up on that.  _20:05_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : You got it, detective! ;)  
So I wanna meet up at that super cool ice cream parlour because they've got this new grape Panta ice cream!  
I'm also pretty sure they have coffee too soooo.........catering for you too  _20:06_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : I think their vanilla ice cream is really nice, I haven't ever really thought about coffee flavour though... Sounds like something I'd like to try.  _20:06_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Yeaahh you do seem like a vanilla type of guy lol _20:06_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : What's that supposed to mean?!  _20:07_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Nothing, nothing  
I merely jest  
Though you do give off a lot of bottom energy and I think that even you can see that  _20:07_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : I don't understand and I'm going to pretend I never read any of that.  
We're getting off topic.  _20:08_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Right you are my friend B))  
After we get ice cream we can head down to my ;] secret lair ;] and have some fun  
If you know what I mean  _20:08_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : ...  
Kokichi.  _20:09_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : You're so diiiirty Shuichi !!!  
I have a SURPRISE for you there  
Stupid head (o 3 o)  _20:10_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Oh? A surprise you say? What kind of surprise?  _20:10_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Ohoho so I've piqued your interest have I ^w^  
Weeeellllll I have mentioned something about it befoooreeee  
Buuut I'm still not telling!!!  _20:11_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Okay Kokichi, I'll play your game. See you tomorrow. Have you decided on a time?  _20:11_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Hmmm  
12 sharp! The perfect time for some ice cream and a hehe [redacted for fun purposes]!!!  _20:12_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Fun purposes, you say? Well, I won't spoil your fun.  
Tomorrow sounds really nice, I'll see you then.  _20:12_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Oh before you go!!! Let's make it a date.  _20:12_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : A date? Why?  _20:13_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : You don't like the sound of that? :(  
That's enough to make me cry!!!!!!!!!!! You're sooo meeaaaaannnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You don't even use emoticons! T-T!  _20:13_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Kokichi calm down! I never said no, did I? _20:13_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : HAHA aww I was only messing with you c:  _20:14_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : About the date?  _20:14_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : nO  
About you being mean!!  
I wasn't joking about the emoticons though. Use them. Just once? For meeeeee???  _20:15_

_Shuichiiii♡_ : Aha okay Kokichi. I'll see you at noon.  _20:16_

_PANTALORD42069247_ : Did you just ignore the entire second half of that message?????? Aw mannn  
:(  
Oh well  
See ya tomorrow Shuichi (:  _20:16_

And that was that.

He put his phone away, frowning at the time, and began to head back to headquarters with an angry huff. Shade was going to kill him.

-  
"I'm... already sick? What... do you mean?"

"Sick in the head of course!" he beamed through evil giggles. 

Her face twisted into that of unalloyed disgust. "That's not very funny." 

"Yeah, yeah, okay." he smirked and his sinister voice fell to a sultry whisper, cooing in her ear. "We all know the _real_ sickness is your burning, passionate love and desire for a _certain someone._ " 

She silently breathed out half a laugh. "I can't help but feel as if you're suggesting I'm lovesick? I'm not lovesick. Shuichi's my friend."

_Bingo._ "Hahaha! I didn't say anything about Shuichi, you're busted."

"This might sound pretty childish of me but from the way you're pushing that on me, I know you like him. Besides, have you SEEN the way you've been all over him? You're so clingy."

He recoiled in horror and spat: "Eww! That's disgusting! You can keep him, lady. Don't _ever_ insult my heterosexuality ever again. Yeesh." he regained his composure. "Anywayyy, I completely intend to revisit previous topics soooo..."

"So?"

He smiled to himself as he contemplated exposing her for what he saw, but he decided against it. He could save that for later. His face lit up brightly, a kind glow washing over him as he held his hand out to her. "If you're feeling well enough to, wanna go back in?" 

When she swiftly accepted and headed inside before him, he flashed a wide, toothy grin dripping with malice. _Sure, maybe I said that you could have him, but,_ with a devious smirk he uncrossed his fingers as he brought them out from behind his back, _the only thing you'll be getting is a head start, at least._

-

Shuichi Saihara arrived at the agreed destination exactly five minutes before the decided time. Being late to a 'date', nevertheless his first official date, was something he certainly wanted to avoid. Even though he and Kokichi had spent time together before, he still wanted to make a good impression of himself. That's how dates worked, right? 

The ice cream parlour was a small round building, though humble in its own sense, with a baby blue painted wall and a light rose and white striped rain shelter canopy above the door, stretching across the width of the building. Most people who had already visited the establishment were queueing up at the 'To-Go' point where a single to triple scoop of which ever flavour of the tens upon tens there were, as well as a small tub of ice cream if wished, were available. 

Though, inside was another story. Unlike the 'To-Go' point, the inside of the building sold ice cream on a much larger scale. This is where sundaes and big treats were delivered, though one treat on the menu always stood out the most. Not just because of its astronomical price, but the abnormal name - the Ultimate Epic Mega Supreme Giant Sundae Surprise - as well as the size of it and how it seemed to be dripping with sauces and sprinkles and whipped cream galore.

Although, this Ultimate Epic Mega Supreme Giant Sundae Surprise (or UEMSGSS for short) attracted quite the bit of attention and the price meant that only the people who were wealthy enough to pay that amount for ice cream were able to participate in this challenge that had arisen from it. Eating competitions to see who could finish the monster of a delicacy broke out, drawing in large cheering crowds screaming out vulgar profanities and encouragement as they waited to see who would reign victorious. As a result, a wall for all the champions has been installed, encouraging more people to blow their money for a shot at fame.

Shuichi hadn't ever paid for it - it was ridiculous, however one time he had found himself up against Olympic gold medallist Akane Owari; quite the spectacular gymnast. He couldn't recall the chain of events leading to that moment, yet somehow he'd managed to land himself a seat on one of the competitors' chairs in the middle of a large shouting crowd, just watching as his rival devoured the mountain of ice cream practically drowned in chocolate sauce. Of course Shuichi couldn't just sit there and watch this beast of a woman, so he ate whatever he could salvage from beneath the sauce at his own pace. Free ice cream was free ice cream; he was glad he didn't have to pay for that.

Nevertheless, Shuichi was glad he was spending the day out of there. He'd seen enough ice cream in there to last a lifetime and the sight of a sundae made him sick to his stomach.

It was at that point where he felt a hand on his forearm which knocked him out of his recollection. "Earth to Shuichi! Do you read me? I repeat: do you read me?"

Shuichi looked down at the boy pretending to contact space. "O-Oh, sorry. Hi Kokichi." And then he remembered that they were on a date.

"Hello," he chirped in response, fishing a small wooden slingshot from his pocket, "look at this, Shuichi! I made it myself." Kokichi seemed to radiate a proud sense of glee as he held it up to the taller boy. 

The detective smiled, inspecting the gadget. "Aha, that's pretty cool. You must be talented if you're able to make cool gizmos like that."

Kokichi didn't respond to the compliment, but instead hopped back with a wide smile and looked towards Shuichi's hand. "What'cha got there, Shuichi?"

"Ah, this?" he held it out in front of him, "well, this is for you. It's really not much but I saw it and it reminded me of you so I bought it and had a little something done to make it special... I hope you like it?"

Kokichi immediately snatched the silver bag from Shuichi's hands, but Shuichi didn't mind all too much, and looked into the bag with a squeal. "Ooh! You did not– Oh, ohoho yes you did! Ah!" Kokichi reached inside and pulled out a metal phone charm. It was small - just a shiny, purple bottle of grape Panta embellished into the silver. Kokichi clutched it in his hand. "I love Panta! How did you know?" 

Shuichi adjusted his hat and looked away with a small smile. "Haha, must've been a lucky guess. But you should turn it over."

"What? Turn it over? Okay," he gently flipped it over and blood flooded to his cheeks as he whispered out: "Kokichi."

"You're smiling - does that mean you like it?" Shuichi asked, almost panicking. In all honesty, he had no idea what to buy him or what he liked. He simply seemed the type to be into phone charms and other little gizmos like that. And if he wasn't a phone charm person that was okay too, he could attach it to a keyring or his keys or keep it in his pocket or whatever he wanted. 

Kokichi brushed his thumb over his own name engraved in the silver. This was _his._ It was branded as _his._ "Yeah, I really like it, stupid head." he nudged Shuichi's arm with his elbow. "I love it." 

Though the detective could barely hear Kokichi's mumbling, he felt relieved that he had liked his gift. "Do you wanna get ice cream now? Let's grab something quickly from the 'To-Go' point."

The other boy simply nodded as he stared at the charm in his palm. "Why don't you wanna go in? I like the strawberry sundaes they make, but whatever you want Shu." he snapped himself out of the hypnotised-looking state he was in and slipped it into his pocket. 

"No reason. Just... Past experiences were quite off-putting." Shuichi smiled as Kokichi led him into the slowly growing queue. 

The shorter chuckled as he looked up at Shuichi with an amused grin. "Oh really? What sort of experience?" 

"Let's just say that a certain Akane Owari made an appearance I'll never forget." Shuichi breathed out sheepishly with a wink.

"You challenged her to one of those funny little eating competitions? You're insane!" his companion chirped with a hint of honeyed undertone, "Although, I am impressed. To think little ol' Shuichi would participate in something like that really shocks me."

The apprentice detective pulled an expression resembling that of mild worry. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing. Just makes me wonder how big of a mouth you truly have," he licked his bottom lip in a devilish smile, "y'know, for all that ice cream."

Shuichi simply rolled his eyes and gently pushed the other boy towards the counter. "Be quiet and buy the ice cream, Kokichi."

His only response was a cheerful giggle as he ordered the flavours they had discussed the night previous. As Kokichi spoke to the woman behind the counter, a certain familiar face sauntered up to Shuichi, hot beverage in hand.

"Hey, Shuichi, is that you?" she called as he looked in her direction. "It's me, Sayaka - the one from the party. Do you remember me?"

Shuichi smiled at his teen idol and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. "Of course I do, Sayaka. How've you been?"

"I've been good, aside from being quite shaken up from that other night..." she bore a sorrowful frown, one that seemed to resonate from deep within Shuichi. "It's been a long time since something like that has happened, danger-wise, I mean."

"It's happened before?" the other questioned, raising an eyebrow. Has the thief struck before? What sort of danger was she in?

"It's not that big of a deal." started Sayaka, opening the lid of her cappuccino, "So we both know I'm a singer in an all-girl band, right? Well a downside to that is receiving all sorts of threats and whatever. Just part of the job, y'know? Anyway, this one particular time we received death threats and bomb threats all in one so the entire recording studio was put on lockdown until it was established that the building and we were safe. It was probably the scariest moment of my life not knowing whether my friends and I would live or be able to sing together again, and even though it was just a threat you can never be too careful."

"That's terrible, I'm sorry that happened." he said soft-spokenly, offering her a look of sympathy. "How's Mahiru?"

Sayaka shrugged. "She's been alright, could be better of course. She's still super upset that her camera's been stolen, but it's not your fault so I hope you don't blame yourself for it." the singer patted his shoulder soothingly before her face lit up. "Actually, whilst you're here, I'm about to go grab lunch if you wanna join me."

It was at that point that Kokichi had slipped in between the two, one arm around Shuichi's waist; the other held the two ice cream cones. "Actually, lady, we're on a date right now so he's coming with _me._ " Kokichi winked at her flirtaciously as Shuichi mouthed a simple 'sorry' at her, taking his coffee flavoured treat from between his date's fingers.

"Ah, no worries then." she chuckled sweetly in an awkward fashion almost like she was trying to dismiss the uncomfortable energy hanging in the air. "I hope you two have a good da—"

She didn't get to finish her sentence as she was interrupted by three loud screams: a cry of warning, her own yelp of shock and fright, and the other a howl of pain.

A cyclist had ridden into the back of Sayaka's leg, tripping her forwards and spilling her drink, uncovered as the lid had lethally been removed, across Kokichi's front, splashing his chin, neck and chest ultimately ruining the impeccable white of his jacket like it had stained its purity. 

The pink-haired cyclist, who was now on the floor, stood up quickly, apologising profusely. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It was an accident I swear!"

"Sorry isn't going to make my skin stop burning you fucking pleb!" Kokichi shouted, pulling the fabric away from himself with his fingertips, trying to hold back agonised tears.

"I didn't mean to, man! Don't shout at me!" he replied, more agitated than sorry this time. 

Shuichi's eyes widened at his language but he understood his reaction. He began to unclip and unhook his jacket to expose the boy's skin to the air and get the fabric away from it. "Kokichi take that off, you can wear my jacket instead."

Kokichi seemed uninterested until Shuichi mentioned that second bit and his jacket and scarf were off within seconds. Shuichi removed his pinstriped jacket revealing his neat undershirt and helped Kokichi into it. The gesture seemed to cheer him up a bit and even though his bitter expression had disappeared completely, Shuichi knew that he was still angry.

Yet his tone was bright too: "It's fine. Be more careful next time and you might actually do something right in your life!" the imp sneered at the man in yellow.

Sayaka stepped in, holding a hand up to each of them. "Boys, please, it was an accident. There's no need for this." she turned to face the boy who had bumped into her with a friendly smile, "Hey, Kazuichi. Don't worry about it. Just please watch where you're going next time, okay?"

"Yeah, sorry. I was trying out this bike but apparently the brakes don't seem to work." the man named Kazuichi climbed back on his bike once again before speeding off, shouting a goodbye to the trio.

"You know him?" Shuichi asked, finally beginning to eat his ice cream and smiling with satisfaction at the taste, unsure if he even should be eating whilst Kokichi was hurt.

"He's a friend of Mahiru. Well, an acquaintance more like, but whatever works." the singer stated sadly, bending down to pick her empty cup off the ground. "He's a mechanic so he's always doing stuff like this, mainly cars and other mechanic-y stuff though." Sayaka did not know much about mechanics. This was more than evident. 

"I see." Shuichi nodded, noticing Kokichi trying to put his wet scarf back on, "Kokichi, please don't get my jacket wet. You're gonna have to suffice without your scarf for a little bit, sorry. More importantly, are you alright? Do you need medical assistance?"

"Medical assistance? Wh– No! I'm fine, it wasn't that hot so it's not gonna leave a burn. I'm just pissed that my jacket and scarf is soaked." the former snapped, peeling the scarf from his wet neck. "Is there somewhere I can dry off?" 

Sayaka reached into her white designer handbag, a pop idol like her was more than expected to own such items. "Hold on, I've got tissues." she hummed as she gave the small packet to the boy who snatched them from her and began wiping his chin and dabbing at his neck. 

Shuichi could see Kokichi trying to hide the tissue from him, but he could've sworn that he saw even a trace of faint beige on it. "Is that makeup?" 

Kokichi froze. "Hm? Are you talking to me?" 

"Yes. Who else?"

"The girl?"

"She's clearly wearing makeup Kokichi. I wouldn't need to ask."

Sayaka laughed softly at the comment.

"Yeah whatever. Is there a problem if I am?" Kokichi snarkily replied, an edge to his voice. "What if I have confidence issues Shuichi? What if instead of running an online business I'm actually into drag? Am I not allowed to wear it? It's a free country, you know."

The detective raised his hands as if surrendering. "N-No! There's no problem - that's not what I meant. Do whatever makes you feel comfortable, I won't judge as long as you're not hurting anybody." he turned away from him and pulled his hat over his eyes. "Sorry if I came off like I was being insensitive."

"Do you want to redo your makeup?" Sayaka asked, once again reaching into her bag. "I bring my makeup out with me so if you want some help fixing yourself up then—"

"Lame." Kokichi interrupted. "I can do it myself. But, if you wanna make yourself useful then come with me and get a plastic bag to put my clothes in; I'm not carrying them around all day."

Sayaka nodded, wanting to get along with Shuichi's apparent date, though it undeniably was not an elementary task. "Let's go then. Shuichi, wait here, we'll be right back."

Shuichi nodded as they ran across the street into the convenience store, leaving him standing awkwardly by himself. He finished off his ice cream which had melted into the cone (which he eventually ate) due to all the commotion and decided to slowly pace up and down a bit until a large yet sudden gust of wind stole the hat which perched upon his head and sent it scuttling across the ground. He chased it, holding his hair with one hand but his other hand was not the only one which reached for the hat.

The hand that retrieved the hat first was slender and pale beneath a white sleeve. Too startled to speak, Shuichi looked up into the masked face of the culprit only to realise that they were a member of the Phantom Thief's organisation. 

Dread filled his body as his jaw dropped and he managed to force a: "Give that back!" from his throat.

Instead, the blond perpetrator stood back up, towering over the detective, and began to run. Shuichi tailed him. He wouldn't let him escape! He chased the man into a secluded alleyway, seemingly darker than all other parts of town as if the sunlight had been swallowed by the shadows.

The man was standing still, facing him, at the end of the alley. Cautiously, Shuichi approached him noticing the large red nose on his mask and the plump, red lips which curved across the bottom half of the disguise.

"You're not the Phantom Thief. Who are you?" he asked, edging closer to the man.

He didn't respond. He stood still and simply watched the detective.

"I asked you a question. I know you work for DICE. Take off your mask and hand over the hat."

One of his requests were met when the mysterious man threw the hat on the ground before him, putting his hands behind his back once more.

Shuichi approached quicker, lunging down to snatch his hat back all whilst never breaking eye contact with the man. He didn't know what he could do to him so he stayed alert.

"Are you alone? How many of you are there?"

"No, detective, we're never truly ever alone." a more nasally voice replied, but it came from behind him.

Shuichi spun around frantically to see another man in white, with short dark brown hair and a mask with a pointy nose, a clown nose at the tip and a red lipped smile underneath. It set him on edge. "What do you want?"

There was a sweet giggle from a female this time. "That's silly, I think you already know."

Behind him, again. He turned and stared into the face of a twin-tailed girl with a mask only covering her eyes and nose, another red nose on it. All of their masks seemed to resemble clowns. They were different from the Phantom Thief's; perhaps he wore a simple masquerade type mask because it was more elegant and less ridiculous looking. But that was besides the point.

"Stop playing dumb you fuckin' moron." a significantly shorter girl said, emerging from the shadows beside him, donning a simpler mask than the rest featuring the infamous red nose and a simple sad-looking pair of small red lips.

"Why don't you just hand yourself over to us? We'll be gentle."

"That was a joke - we honestly hate you, detective. You're a menace."

"I am impressed at your ability to cause so much trouble, though. For just a frail looking boy you really are smart, buddy. You even escaped my sleeping gas."

"You shouldn't praise the enemy, Boomer. You should cave in their skulls and swap their organs for cow vomit."

Shuichi couldn't keep up with the amount of people who had begun to surround him, like a dense swarm of insects. The voices belonged to another blond with hair which spiked up, his mask freakishly uncomfortable to look at, a murky yellow in colour and soulless eyes and all. His was followed by a big breasted female wearing a pink mask with giant, plump purple lips, then a round man with a human-like mask with blue eyes (supposedly code named Boomer), and finally a tall, bulky man with a red afro and a mask which had giant red lips in a wide, open-mouthed smile, covering about three quarters of the mask.

Shuichi couldn't speak. DICE was here. DICE was here right before him in broad daylight. There was no way it could be true and he was half convinced that it was all in his head, yet he tried to remain hazardous. He counted eight of them so far. The Phantom Thief had yet to show up, so there was at least nine members of the organisation. Insightful.

"There's sure a lot of you." Shuichi mused, more terrified than anything. "What are you all here for? It's the middle of the day, anyone could see you."

"You think that scares us? The police can't catch us. You can't even catch us, not even when our boss is an incompetent fool who chooses to stay and play with his little detective toy instead of following the mission." Shuichi hadn't heard this voice before, and he turned to face the owner; a tall man with light brown hair whose long fringe was swept across the left side of his face, again wearing their trademark clown mask with a small red nose and red lips. However, something was off about him, like he held some sort of higher power than the rest. _Ten._

"You're giving me an awfully good chance to catch you all now." Shuichi responded as he thought of an escape plan. He knew today wasn't the day he'd catch DICE, but he sure would threaten to. "You're all in one place - one call for backup, one message sent to the police, and you're done for."

The crowd erupted into an explosion of amused laughter. The same man as before spoke again, still seemingly calm as he stood with his hands in his pockets. "How are you going to manage that? You never know if we're going to attack you. Nine against one? You don't stand a chance." he paused to chuckle lightly to himself, taking on the form of a real evil genius, "You don't know us, but we certainly know you, Shuichi Saihara."

The mentioning of his name sent chills down his spine. "I'm going to ask one more time: what do you want?"

"To dispose of you. You only cause us problems, after all." he said, taking a step closer to the detective, to which he impulsively took one back. "We really need to do something about you at this stage. You see, we're so close to achieving our goals but all this time you have been interrupting and delaying us. If our leader won't do anything about it, of course we'll have to take matters into our own hands."

Shuichi narrowed his eyes in disdain. "Meaning you're going to kill me?"

"I wouldn't rule out that option," the criminal sneered, gliding forwards to stand before the frightened detective who was poorly disguising his fear, "but there is an alternative, if you don't wish to die."

"Which is?"

"To hand yourself over. You know we still have her, right?" yes, Shuichi knew very well that they had someone he held dear to him captive, but if it wasn't Kaede or Maki he couldn't think of anyone else. "We'll let her go if you willingly come with us. We'll be taking you either way, so why not just cooperate? The more you fight us the more we'll hurt her."

"I don't know who you're talking about!" Shuichi spat as his volume rose tenfolds. "I'm starting to believe that that's all a hoax just to shake me up - you can't control me through lies and threats! There's no way I'm coming with you."

Whilst anyone else would have grown furious with the detective for shouting in their face with such disrespect, Shade found it entertaining. He grabbed the detective by the collar, removing his hand from inside his baggy sleeve in the process. "I'm going to let you in on a secret, detective. There's only one more big heist left, you know what that means, right? It means you have one more chance to capture us, and you will blow it once again. You're a pathetic excuse for a detective, but I will admit you've come far. You're the one person we truly see as a threat, congratulations. Once we have completed the project the world will belong to us. You will belong to us, we'll make sure of that. You, your friends, your family, even your precious Kaede will belong to us, and we will make you all suffer. This is your last chance to back off because I swear your little friend is going to have her throat slit and her body mutilated. On tape."

"That's... That's horrible!" Shuichi felt sick to his stomach, and the insistence that someone valuable to him truly was taken hostage frightened him more than anything. He didn't want to cause anyone pain or suffering, but he had a job to do; if DICE were not stopped then they would continue with their criminal activity and threaten who-knows-how-many other people. They were a danger to society who needed stopping immediately. "All this world domination crap is so childish! You can't take over the world and the fact that you think somehow you can with a few random miscellaneous items is ridiculous! Are you all that delusional?"

"You would never understand, but don't worry detective. Soon everything will become apparent." the villain jeered, releasing the boy from his grip. "Your worst enemy is yourself, yet you seem unbothered. But," he grinned invisibly beneath the mask, "the die has been cast and the cast must die."

Before Shuichi could think of a clever response, a shower of marbles came raining down upon the criminals followed by a shout from a familiar voice. "Shuichi!"

"Kokichi!" he shouted back, though panicked in case Kokichi became their next victim.

However, the opposite happened when the same man who had been threatening Shuichi called out: "Retreat!" and the nine of them scattered like autumn leaves in the wind, scaling the walls and buildings around them before disappearing out of sight.

Kokichi ran up to Shuichi. "What was that all about? Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, just a little disturbed." he put his hat back on after fixing his hair with his fingers. "Today really isn't going to plan."

Kokichi, plastic bag containing his belongings in one hand and his slingshot in the other, appeared to be distracted when he replied, eyes seeming distant as if in thought. "You can say that again." he grabbed Shuichi's shirt sleeve, "See, my slingshot saved the day! The shop clerk wouldn't let me have a bag unless I bought something, and I needed marbles for my slingshot, so... Marbles!"

"You really were a hero Kokichi," Shuichi started, tone laced with relief, "without you something bad could've happened."

Kokichi grinned at the praise. "Let's get out of here. We don't want them coming back armed."

"Y-Yeah. Good idea." the detective agreed, leading them out of the alley. "Where's Sayaka?" 

A shrug. "She said she had to go. To be honest I thought she'd be sticking around all day." Kokichi's hand slid down the other's arm to instead hold onto his wrist. "So, back to our date! I've got something very special planned."

"Yeah," Shuichi smiled, "you've mentioned. Lead the way."

-

Aergia, bare faced, peered out from upon the rooftop, having not retreated with the rest of DICE. She studied her boss wearing the nemesis' clothes and the way he acted in such a friendly manner towards their enemy, she wouldn't have been surprised if he wasn't faking it after all. But what she scrutinised more was the detective. 

Surely he'd never guess it was her. Not now, not after he'd heard the words come out of her mouth. 

She wasn't who she used to be. 

She didn't want to have to go back to being who she used to be.

It was bad enough that people from her past had somehow been roped into this, and it was extremely risky to continue forwards as herself; they were both ticking time bombs of realisation.

But would they realise?

_Maybe._ Just maybe. It was a possibility she couldn't ignore. When it came down to the detective, she had to proceed with caution. 

She slipped her mask back on and as quickly as she appeared, she was gone.

-

Once again Kokichi and Shuichi slipped in through the broken fence in the park as the smaller of the two lead them to his secret hideout. Studying the wide, almost proud smile plastered across his face, Shuichi knew that Kokichi really had something in store for him. 

Upon arrival, Shuichi's eyes were immediately drawn not to that the mattress underneath the sheet shelter Kokichi kept there (though in immaculate condition today), but the television on the ground in front of it. It was an old TV, one of those bulky boxes, but the thing that Shuichi wanted to know is how he got his hands on something so old yet in such good condition. Like the mattress. 

"Kokichi," Shuichi started, "is that a TV?"

"Yup! Works too." he boasted as he approached it and started pressing buttons on the front of it, bringing the screen to life. "Battery powered, I found an old TV so I asked a friend to upgrade and fix it."

The detective, who had absolutely no experience or knowledge of electronics, was impressed. "Sounds like a cool friend."

Kokichi's face twisted into something sour and he let out some unsure noises. "Eh, guess so." Gadget was a pediculous rakefire in his opinion because he was a part of DICE - the organisation that opposed him. Yet Gadget had still been so kind to him, was he the only one on his side? Was he even on his side at all?

"So, Kokichi, you wanna tell me what this is all about?" he knew that Kokichi must've wanted to watch something with him, but he wanted to give the boy the honour and glory of explaining himself.

Kokichi jumped onto the mattress, the springs throwing him back into the air ever so slightly as he settled down. "Oh come on, detective. We both know you know that I know that you know what's going on here. I'm pretty sure you've deduced my intentions already considering you brought the TV up. I mean, why else would it be here?"

"Maybe I do." Shuichi tittered, joining him, sitting comfortably by his side. "What is it you wanna watch?"

"I would say its your choice, but..."

"But?"

Kokichi stirred. "I want you to try to remember back to that morning I took you out to the theme park. Can you recall what I said to you?" 

"What you said? Let me see," he tried to force his memory back to that day to remember what happened before the threats and the fear sank in. Right, that morning he had a meeting which Kokichi picked him up from. What did he say, though? Wasn't it a reference to something? Something about shopping? Going shopping? "Ah," he said with a smile, "you said 'get in loser, we're going shopping', right?"

"No. I didn't say that." the other boy said with a blank expression, wiping the smile from Shuichi's face. "Man, you're supposed to be a detective and you couldn't remember that one iconic phrase?"

"I'm sorry, I guess I forgot." Shuichi frowned, evidently hurt by either his forgetfulness or Kokichi's words.

Kokichi began to laugh, picking up a beaten-up remote control; whilst the TV had been fixed, this evidently hadn't. He pressed some buttons and the title screen for 'Mean Girls' flickered onto it. "Just kidding! You were right!"

"O-Oh? Y-Yeah I remember properly now. You said you'd watch Mean Girls with me at some point. Guess now was the perfect opportunity, huh?" Shuichi enquired, his disheartened expression melting away.

"You really should have more confidence in yourself. You're smarter than you think, Shuichi." he suggested, again turning stern. _But nowhere near smart enough, my dearest detective._ "Anyway, yup! Mean Girls! It's one of my favourite movies, not to make myself sound bland and boring. It's simply a masterpiece."

"Of course." Shuichi nodded, noting that Kokichi's comment was certainly laced with something poisonous, but he didn't think too much of it. Kokichi was Kokichi, there wasn't really another accurate way to describe the enigma. "Press play then."

He didn't. "Have you ever been to a cinema, Shuichi?"

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Just answer it!"

"Well," Shuichi began, "once or twice. I never really had the opportunity to, and it's much cheaper to wait for the movie to come out on DVD."

"Can't relate." he stared away and tilted his head to the side as if contemplating what was just said. "So do you know what we're missing, detective?"

"No?" Shuichi said slowly. 

"Snacks!" he cheered as he reached behind the mattress and revealed a bag of treats.

Shuichi couldn't help but smile.

-

The group, still in their masks, returned from their mission to recruit and retrieve the detective. The nine of them had gathered at the agreed meeting spot nearby and walked back to HQ together. Now, they were on their way back to the control room. 

Upon entry, they were face to face with a familiar someone sitting upon their boss' throne. "Mystikó." Shade enquired. "I didn't expect to see you here today."

Mystikó peered down from the throne at the lowly pawns at the base of the stairs. "You know know they say, _dear._ Expect the unexpected. You never know exactly what's going to happen next. The rodent needed feeding."

He frowned. "That's something I expected you to reply with, dear. We've had a word about the pet names. Drop them."

Mystikó did not reply, simply crossing one leg over the other.

Minerva stepped forwards. "You're aware of the boss' location, are you not?"

"Bringing it up makes it sound important. Where is he?"

"Interfering. Let me show you something." she offered as she sat in her chair and used her fingerprint to turn her software on, before she input her password into the system.

Mystikó joined her behind her, peering at the screen as Minerva clicked through her files, finally reaching one called 'Shuichi Saihara' hovering her mouse over it. _That_ caught her attention. "Why do you have a file on Shuichi?"

"It's actually—"

"Minerva, that's the wrong file!" Pigtails shouted.

"Why is there a file on Shuichi? Don't make me repeat myself."

"It's not about him! _Or_ anyone else! It's just keeping tabs on him."

"It _is_ about him, Pigtails. They're—"

"Minerva! You dumb piglet whore!" 

Minerva snarled. "Watch your language you puny twat! You're awfully small so be so hugely irritating!" 

"Fuck you!" 

"Ladies, ladies! Can we please calm it down? Yeah?" 

"Piss off you spawny-eyed pig-faced wazzock. Go fuck a robot or something and then go fuck yourself Gadget!"

"Jeez!" 

Mystikó pushed Aergia and Pigtails aside. "All of you should shut up before I have your tongues torn out and I slam you all inside an iron maiden."

"Iron...maiden?" Boomer's face turned as pale as his uniform. 

Ego rolled his eyes. "It's a medieval torture device. Of course Mystikó would know all about those."

Mystikó shot a threatening glare in his direction. "You, I'll have you on the breaking wheel."

He smiled. "Kinky."

Minerva coughed, drawing the attention back to her. "I think you've all forgotten the point of this conversation." But it _had_ given her a moment to gather her thoughts and think things through. It had saved her from getting DICE into a lot of trouble. 

Mystikó scoffed. "The boss. That folder. Where's the correlation?" 

"Oh!" Minerva said, leaning back in her chair as she double-clicked on the folder. "That's what we were talking about. Sorry, I forgot. My mind is pretty jumbled right now, my sincerest apologies. I thought we were talking about where Shuichi was. The boss is likely checking out the spot for the next heist as asked of him."

Screenshots of tons of messages loaded up, including the exchange of messages from the evening prior right at the top.

Mystikó's eyes scanned the screen. "He's out with... Kokichi? That Kokichi?"

A shrug. "Probably. Whatever that means."

Mystikó huffed, kicking the base of Minerva's chair. "Damn it!"

Shade cracked a smile. "What seems to be the problem _dear_?" he repeated the pet name, this time to intentionally rub salt into the wound. He didn't know what happened with their boss, but he could tell that Mystikó certainly didn't like him.

"He freaks me out. I don't need to provide an explanation." Mystikó continued to read, gradually ending up mumbling aloud. "Let's make it a date. They're on a date? Shuichi Saihara is on a date?" the thought was almost comical, but the evidence was right there. "Is that where you lot disappeared to earlier?"

"Since we knew where he would be, thanks to Minerva, I figured that it would be a perfect opportunity to capture him and bring him in." Ego chortled.

"It failed." Smile added, voice hoarse and quiet from not having spoken for the entirety of that day.

"Clearly." the DICE infiltrator pointed with a roll of the eyes. "Next time you'd better get him properly. Make yourselves useful."

"Speaking of making yourself useful," Shade began, approaching Mystikó, "we have a new video we would like you to watch. You may not like all these videos we're sending you, but you must know all there is to know about DICE before you can join. And don't forget to watch the introduction video every night before you sleep; you need to retain that information." he snapped his fingers with one hand beneath his baggy sleeve.

Mystikó yawned. "Yeah, yeah. I know. I make sure to watch all the videos, I'm a dedicated member of this organisation and I intend to become the rightful leader."

"And you shall, upon the completion of our agreement's terms." he replied. "Now, we must ask you to leave. You've overstayed your welcome."

Mystikó cracked a smile. "Whatever you say. I'll be off. I want to make alterations to your plans for the next heist." Before anyone could protest, Mystikó's thumb was pressed onto the thumb pad and the room was swiftly abandoned.

Shade frowned. "The rest of you; take your masks off and get back to work. We've gone off schedule today because of our little outing - the boss knows this too. Unless we want more trouble than we're already going to receive, I suggest you all get back on track. We're running behind."

And with that, they exchanged small noises of agreement and goodbyes before going their separate ways. Except Aergia, who Shade asked to stay behind.

"Are you afraid?"

"Afraid? Of what?"

"Mystikó. Are you afraid of Mystikó?"

"Fuck off, of course not. Are you fucking stupid?"

"I see. You're afraid of being recognised. You won't be, as long as you stay a safe distance away. You know the organisation won't let you get hurt."

"I don't like being the main part of all this bullshit. I don't want to be some stupid dummy or an achievement to unlock. You're all assholes."

"Is that how you see it?"

"Go away, Shade. I'm going to my room."

Aergia stormed out, kicking the metal doors with as much weight as she could, leaving Shade alone with Minerva.

They had planning to do, a lot of planning.

Aergia's words fresh in his mind, he set out to take the torture to the next level.

A much higher level. But for whom? That was up for him to decide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! There's a lot going on in this one. Any theories about Mystikó? Shade's attitudes towards Mystikó? The ambush, which perhaps wasn't a fail after all?
> 
> Believe me, there's a lot to work from here. A lot in every single part. 
> 
> Foreshadowing and hinting galore! 
> 
> This is it until late June/July so I hope you all enjoy <3


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